


A Different Approach

by makeme123



Category: Carmilla (Web Series)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Human, Coffee Shops, College student Laura, Eventual Romance, Eventual Smut, F/F, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Hollstein - Freeform, Human Carmilla Karnstein, Laura Hollis/Carmilla Karnstein Fluff, Libraries, Tiny Gay Laura Hollis
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-05-04
Updated: 2015-06-01
Packaged: 2018-03-28 22:53:47
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 14
Words: 65,168
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3872794
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/makeme123/pseuds/makeme123
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Laura is trying to pass her history class this semester but having trouble.<br/>She meets someone who she thinks works at the Coffee shop/library on campus and somehow they end up studying together.</p><p>History quickly becomes her favorite subject.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Brief Encounters

**Author's Note:**

> I'm still pretty new to this whole Fic thing, so be nice.

Carmilla stood at the entrance to the coffee shop attached to the campus library, tugging her jacket tighter around her body. One arm hugging her body tightly, her hand rubbing up and down quickly trying to create some heat from friction. Her other hand busy holding loosely to the empty coffee cup in her hand. 

"Ugh finally" she let out a groan as she saw Lafontaine making their way in her direction.  

"Well good morning to you too." LaF gave Carmilla a smile while sorting through their keys to find the right one for the door.  They had just started managing at the coffee shop on top of taking a full schedule in order to graduate this year, and as much as they enjoyed the job and pay check, things were definitely busy.

Carmilla just grunted and shot LaF a glare, starting to bounce on her feet in another attempt to create some warmth.  She breathed out a heavy breath and watched it turn into a cloud in front of her.  It was the beginning of fall and a rather rainy one so far, which left the morning air cold, and the campus icy with morning frost.

"What are you even doing up, it's not even 5:30 am yet?" LaF asked, their attention on trying to unlock the door in front of them. 

"Does it count as ' _up_ ' if I haven't actually been ' _down_ ' yet?" Carmilla rolled her eyes and grabbed the keys out of Laf’s hand, unlocked the door quickly and pushed passed the red head to walk into the coffee shop, leaving LaF standing on the step outside alone.

LaF chuckled and walking inside, shutting the door behind them, "you know, I think you pull more all nighters now that you're done with school than you ever did while you actually went here" they twisted their face into a thoughtful expression "actually, I think all you did while you were, was sleep." They gave Carmilla a playful smirk, "how did you even graduate?"

"Very funny ginger snap. How about some coffee?" Carmilla snapped back, not amused at Laf’s idea of humor.  It was far too early to deal with it, honestly. 

LaF walked lazily over to the counter and started fixing up some coffee for them both, "you sure you need more?" They gestured to the already empty coffee cup in Carmilla's hand. 

Carmilla tossed the cup on the trash and rolled her eyes, "do you pester all your customers like this, or am I just special?"

LaF let out a big laugh, "you are _definitely_ special." A wide grin broke out on their face, "but you only get your coffee if you help me get ready for opening, since technically I don't have to serve you for another 15 minutes" 

Carmilla raised an eyebrow in their direction before sighing defeatedly and moving over to the tables. She started pulling the upside down chairs from the tops of the tables and setting them on the floor, kicking them into place underneath the tables until Lafontaine set a hot cup of coffee on the counter. 

As soon as the steaming cup was ready, Carmilla abandoned her duties helping get things ready and grabbed the cup. She walked over to the couch that sat up against the back wall, furthest from the entrance and next to the small fireplace in the corner.  She set her bag on the ground, slipped off her jacket and dropped down into the cushions and took a sip of her coffee. 

Carmilla wasn't usually the sentimental type, but she enjoyed coming back to the coffee shop on her old college campus. After spending most of her days around annoying teenagers at her job, it was nice to be around people her own age. Even if she didn't usually talk to anyone and she also had a strong dislike for most people in general. But people her age were slightly more tolerable than teenagers. On the plus side though, it was conveniently placed in the middle of her daily commute.  It was a 10 minute walk from home to the coffee shop, then another 15 minutes to her job.

She continued to sit there, sipping her coffee as the world around her started to wake.  Despite the cold, there were still birds too stubborn to move to warmer places chirping outside, students and faculty starting to fill the coffee shop, sitting at tables and on couches. Grabbing their caffeine fix before class, meeting up with friends and classmates. People shuffled through the door that attached the library to the coffee shop, grabbing their coffee before starting their study sessions or group projects. 

Carmilla watched the people as they rotated through.  Some students looking like they were still asleep, some looking like they hadn't slept in days.  Her favorites were the ones that looked like they had no idea what was going on- the dazed look, confused expressions- it made her laugh. _Internally, of course_. 

Carmilla finished her coffee and looked at her watch, she had just a few minutes before she had to start walking to work if she was going to be on time. Which, she probably should be since nothing could start without her there.

——

"What'll it be?" LaF was looking down at their note pad when the next customer walked up to the counter. 

"Two hot chocolates and a brownie, please."

LaF recognized the voice immediately.  Their eyes darted up from their notebook to meet the gaze of Lola Perry.  Curly red hair, beautiful eyes and a smile that made LaF melt.  “oh, hi there, Perry" they smiled goofily at the girl on the other side of the counter. 

Perry met Laf’s smile with a bashful smile of her own. Her cheeks pinking slightly to match her hair.  "Good morning, LaFontaine."

“Two hot chocolates this morning, huh? Another study date with Laura?”

“Just a quick one this morning before her class. She’s still having trouble with history. Its not exactly my best subject but I hate seeing her struggle.” She made a thoughtful face and nodded energetically.

“I’m sure you’re perfect.” Laf blushed at the comment that came out of their mouth, “I mean, the perfect study buddy, that is.”

They smiled at each other for a moment before the person in line behind Perry cleared their throat noisily, pulling them from their own little world. LaF yelled back Perry’s order as she stepped out of the way for the impatient customer behind her. Laf couldn't help the annoyed look that broke out on their face at the person that had interrupted their conversation with Perry. They had only ever talked at the coffee shop and Laf had a huge crush on her and looked forward to the short conversations they were lucky enough to get a couple times a day. They had noticed Perry came in for brownies and hot chocolate a lot more frequently lately. Maybe that was a sign they should step it up and actually ask her out. _Maybe_.

After calling back the next order Laf glanced over to where Perry was standing waiting for her order and caught her staring. Her cheeks immediately blushed and Laf couldn't help the smile that quickly replaced the annoyed expression they had been holding before.

——

Carmilla stood up and stretched her arms above her head. After an all nighter of grading papers, she knew it was going to be a long day. She threw on her leather jacket and slung her bag over her shoulder and started walking towards the door.  The coffee shop was pretty busy now and making her way to the door was a much slower process than she had the patience for.  She pushed herself through the cluster of people in line, almost to the door when in walked a girl Carmilla had never seen before. She had long honey blonde hair, creamy brown eyes, and a smile that made you want to smile too. She was unbelievably beautiful. 

Her arms were full of books and papers, the strap to her bag falling off her shoulder down her arm, with a giant grin plastered on her face. She shuffled through the door just as someone pushed their way out, clipping her arm. The run in caused her to fumble with her belongings for a second before throwing them onto the ground in front of her.  She called out a "sorry!" To the person that ran into her as she knelt down to gather up her things. 

Carmilla watched the blonde curiously- she was the one that got ran into, yet she was also the one who apologized.  She was kneeling on the ground picking up her stuff and still smiling wide.   _Carmilla was intrigued._  She took a couple steps forward and squatted down to help the girl gather up her things before they both stood. Carmilla reached out the bundle of papers she had gathered and placed them on the disorganized stack in the blondes arms. 

Laura didn't look up as she tried to organize the belongings in her arms a little better, "oh my gosh, thank you so much, I'm such a klutz sometimes!" She finally stopped fidgeting and looked up to make eye contact with the kind stranger that helped her, only to be met with Carmilla's dark eyes.  

Carmilla gave her a crooked smile “Anytime, sweetheart" then a wink as stepped around her and headed towards the door.  

_Woah._ Laura watched her as she sauntered away. _Who was that?_

LaF placed another cup of coffee on the corner of the counter and Carmilla grabbed it as she walked by.

“Later, grumpy! Thanks for helping me open." LaF called after her

Carmilla threw her arm up in a half hearted wave as she took a sip of the new coffee before getting to the door.  She grabbed the handle and called back over her shoulder, "half that tip jar is mine." Then she disappeared outside into the hustle of students making their way around campus. 

Laura watched her until she lost sight of her through the window then made her way over to one of the empty tables in the room.  Just as she sat down and let her stuff fall on the table, a cup of hot chocolate and a brownie was being placed in front of her.

"Good morning, Laura! Ready to study?" Perry seemed especially chipper today for it being so early in the morning, but Laura figured that was probably a good thing considering they were about to study the subject she struggled with the most.  Perry pulled a small cloth from her bag and wiped down the table and chair before sitting down across from Laura.  She folded her hands together on the table and smiled wide.   

Laura let out a sigh and opened her book up on the table.  _It was going to be a long morning._


	2. Not your type

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A little back story on Carmilla and Laf  
> Laura asks Carmilla for some help, meaning laura "owes her one"
> 
> a little from:  
> Perry and Laf..  
> Laura and Carmilla..  
> Danny and Kirsch...

A few days later Carmilla was back at the coffee shop, standing at the door, waiting for Laf to get there. She finally gave in to the signs of fall and was wearing a heavier jacket, gloves and a beanie, but it was still cold. Carmilla wasn't really a fan of cold weather. Or weather at all, actually.  
_Winter is too cold._  
_Summer is too hot._  
_Fall is the step before winter._  
_Spiring is.. well, it’s called spring, so I hate it purely because of that._

She rubbed her hands together and blew a warm breathe into them. She hadn't been out there for too long but her fingers were cold enough to annoy her. She was glad she had opted for the beanie because it was starting to rain slightly.

“Top o’ the mornin’ to ya!” Laf called to Camilla from down the sidewalk.

“Just hurry up, leprechaun. Before I freeze to death or kill you from caffeine withdrawal.”

They made their way inside and began their normal routine. Carmilla begging for coffee, Lafontaine holding it ransom until Carmilla helped get things ready for opening. Carmilla huffing the whole time and then abandoning Laf to get the shop open by themselves the moment coffee was ready to go sit on the couch in the back of the room.

They had gotten into a pretty good rhythm over their few years of friendship. They weren't two people you would guess to be friends but thats probably what made it work. They were very different on the surface, but they had both been through some pretty heavy stuff and in the long run that made it so they understood each other fairly well. They had met freshman year at orientation and Lafontaine being their normal friendly self annoyed Carmilla to no end, which made them want to be even more friendly, just to push her buttons. There was an incident with an ignorant asshole a few weeks into their first semester and Carmilla had stepped in and shut down the negative comments being made towards Laf, which had surprised pretty much everyone.

Carmilla was the type people usually left alone and she in return was very good at keeping to herself. To most, she was mysterious. She was undeniably gorgeous. Dark brown intoxicating eyes, porcelain like skin, raven black hair that fell in loose curls around her shoulders and her jawline. _wow_.   But beyond that, she was extremely intelligent as well, which made her super intimidating to most people. She seemed pretty closed off and definitely didn't make friends quickly. Most people viewed her as being bitchy because of that but she was just selective of who she spent her time with and let into her life. Past relationships had made her realize not everyone was worth having around and that a few real connections were better than a lot of fake ones.

She was actually quite the conundrum, Laf had even asked if they could study her once. _For science_. For as much as Carmilla was standoffish and intimidating, she sure didn't have a hard time getting dates. Most of the time she seemed unapproachable, a trait she was actually very proud of, but if she wanted your attention there was nothing you could do to deny it. She could draw you in and make you want more before you knew what was happening. Laf had never actually seen her have to make the first move- somehow she didn't have to lift a finger, and she could get any girl she wanted to make a move on her. It was fascinating to see in action.

Lafontaine on the other hand, was the polar opposite of Carmilla. They were kind and open and quick to make friends and talk to people. They made everyone feel comfortable and wanted. They always had the best advice and somehow could tell you that you’re being stupid without it sounding mean. They had the biggest heart and wore it on their sleeve. They had been through a lot to get to where they were and knew what it was like to lack honest love in their life and didn't want anyone around them to not feel loved. So they loved. And you felt it. But giving your heart that freely means being vulnerable to lots of heart ache, too. They had a tendency to try to shoulder other peoples burdens and take things personally. Carmilla frequently reminded them that it wasn't their job to fix everyone, but that just loving them would probably help them fix themselves.

When you got to know the two, it made sense that it worked. They both needed parts of the other to balance out their personalities. Laf made Carmilla softer, and Carmilla made Laf stronger. And Laf definitely helped build up Carmilla's tolerance for dealing with people. Laf loved to push her buttons, and Carmilla was getting better at not wanting to punch everyone she met in the face because of it.

——

Carmilla was sitting on the couch by the fireplace again, waiting till the last possible second to get up and head to work, when in walked the blonde from the other day. She practically skipped in and over to an empty table, same wide grin as the last time Carmilla saw her. Carmilla watched her for a minute as she went through her backpack, pulling out papers and books, her eyebrows pushing together in confusion as she read something on one of her papers. She sighed, kept reading, and kept looking more and more confused as the time passed.

Carmilla wasn't sure what it was that had her so intrigued with this girl. She definitely wasn't her usual type to be attracted to, but _there was something about her._ She stood up and gathered her things and walked up to the counter, skipping the long line that had formed, eliciting some angry groans and a few choice words from people that had been waiting to get their coffee.

“The girl at the table” She said casually, nodding in the blondes direction.

Laf looked past Carmilla to see who she was talking about and saw Laura, a grin immediately growing on their lips. “Laura? She’s not your usual type.”

“Doesn't matter.” she shrugged nonchalantly, “whats her drink?”

Laf’s grin widened, “Hot chocolate. And I don’t think you're her type, either.”

A few people in line called out to hurry up, they had classes to get to, blah, blah, blah.. Carmilla didn't care.

“I’m not her type?” she raised an eyebrow and looked over her shoulder at Laura. She was still scrunching up her face and attempting to read over her notes. _She’s kind of adorable._ “That doesn't matter either.” she turned back to Laf, “Can I have a hot chocolate, please?” she smiled mischievously.

Laf chuckled and shook their head as they went to get a hot chocolate ready. “this should be good” they said to themselves as they set it on the counter.

Carmilla took the hot chocolate from Laf, and glared at the people in line as she passed by them, walking up to Laura’s table. She stood there a second waiting for Laura to notice her presence. _She didn’t._ One more thing on the list of things that intrigued Carmilla. _She wasn't used to being ignored_.

——

“Good morning, Lafontaine” Perry smiled wide, “two hot chocolates and a brownie, please.”

Laf smiled warmly back at her, “I think you might only need one hot chocolate today” they nodded in Laura's direction and Perry turned to look. They both saw Carmilla standing next to the table Laura was at, _being completely ignored_.

Perry giggled and turned back to Laf, “Laura does have a tendency to be a little oblivious sometimes.”

_Understatement of the century._

Laf smiled wide and set a hot chocolate on the counter. Perry reached into her bag for her wallet but before she could pull it out Laf quickly grabbed the cup and lifted it up in her direction, “It’s on the house” earning a bashful smile and a slight blush from Perry as she grabbed it, said thank you and walked over towards Laura.

——

Carmilla set the hot chocolate on the table in front of Laura and waited for a reaction. Laura had a pencil in her mouth, flipping through papers, still not paying complete attention to what was happening around her.

“Thankth perry” she mumbled around her pencil without looking up.

Carmilla let herself laugh. _This is ridiculous_. She couldn't believe what was happening, being ignored was a first for her and it only made her more curious about the girl sitting in front of her.

Laura heard the laugh and turned her head, finally noticing who was actually standing there. The pencil fell out of her mouth onto the table as her jaw dropped when she saw who it was.

Carmilla smiled amusedly and raised an eyebrow.

“Oh hi, again!” She glanced down at the hot chocolate, “I um, I actually didn't order this?” she looked around the room a little confused.

Carmilla smiled, _she couldn't help it_ , “It’s on the house, cupcake” Then she turned on her heels and walked towards the door calling over to Laf, “don't forget, half that tip jar is mine” before she walked out.

 

“what just happened?” Laura was staring at the hot chocolate in front of her when Perry sat down across from her, holding her own hot chocolate.

“Ready to study, Laura?” her smile was even bigger today.

Laura looked up at Perry, still a confused expression on her face, “did you pay for my hot chocolate today?”

“I didn't even pay for mine, today.” Her smile growing wider, she looked over at Laf behind the counter, “it was on the house.” she looked back at Laura a little embarrassed at her twitter pated state.

Laura looked back over her shoulder towards the door where she had last seen the mystery girl, “Mine too.” she turned back to Perry and smiled. Both girls shrugged their shoulders and giggled before opening up their books and beginning the task of attempting to read Laura's notes.

They were hunched over their books and papers when Perry felt a tap on her shoulder. She turned and was met with a shy smile from Lafontaine.

“I forgot to give you your brownie.” They smiled at the two girls at the table.

Seeing the look Laf and perry were sharing, Laura felt the urge to help things along “Hey Laf, you should sit down!” Laura pushed some papers out of the way so Laf could set down the plate with the brownie and sit down.

They looked over their shoulder towards the counter. The line had disappeared as the morning rush had finished. Most students were now in class, or had already been served and were now enjoying their coffee while studying or pretending to study. T

hey shrugged and smiled, “sure, for a minute” their eyes locking on Perry’s again as they sat down with the two girls.

Laura watched the two red heads staring at each other without speaking for what felt like forever. It was clear they were into each other, _its amazing how oblivious people can be_. She rolled her eyes and cleared her throat, “So… Laf. Any exciting new experiments?”

Laf’s eyes immediately lit up and they went into a rant involving some rare bacteria and _glow sticks_? Maybe it was glow worms? Laura wasn't really listening. As soon as they started talking she realized Laf knew the mystery girl from earlier and was trying to figure out a casual way to ask about her.

“…Its actually quite fascinating when you know the science behind it.” Laf said excitedly. Perry was trying to follow along, listening intently, but clearly didn't really understand what they were talking about. Not for lack of effort though.

“Right, of course.” Laura quickly added, pulling herself from her own thoughts, “So who was that, that helps you open sometimes?” _Smooth. Super casual Laura_.

“Who, Carmilla?” Laf smirked knowingly. _Maybe Carmilla was her type after all._

“Carmilla. Hmm.” Laura looked back down to her notes in front of her, pretending to read them, really just thinking about Carmilla. Both encounters with her had been over fairly quickly, but she couldn't help but wonder about the girl.

Laf and Perry shared a look before Laf stood up and pushed the chair in, “Well I better get back to work but thanks for the break.” They smiled warmly at Perry, “It was great seeing you.” Then they turned and walked back to their position behind the counter.

Perry gave Laf a wave as they got back to the counter then turned her attention to Laura. “Carmilla, hmm?” She pursed her lips together and folded her arms across her chest.

Laura laughed and rolled her eyes, “Lafontaine, hmmm?” shy mimicked her tone mockingly and raised an eyebrow at the red head.

They both let out a giggle before getting back into studying the exciting world of history that Laura still just did not understand.

——

“Brody Kirsch! I’m going to kill you!” Danny yelled as she barreled down the track after the tall boy sprinting away from her.

“You’ll have to catch me first!” Kirsch yelled over his shoulder at the red head hot on his heels.

Their relationship was a complicated one, and thats putting it nicely. They had always been in some sort of war- whether it was over athletic achievement, who could eat the most hotdogs in one sitting, or who belonged to the better group at the university. Zetas vs Summer Society. But at the same time, they were actually pretty good friends. _Complicated_.

Danny was training for her next track meet coming up when kirsch had come up behind her with a cooler of water. The rest, well.. I’m sure you can guess.

Danny finally caught up with Kirsch and shoved his shoulder hard, knocking him down onto the grass next to the track in a jumble of limbs and grass chunks. She smiled smugly down at him as she bent over, hands on knees, catching her breath.

Kirsch rolled onto his back and quickly checked his watch, “You can say thank you now, summer psycho.”

“What are you talking about, jock strap?” Danny glared down at him, still trying to get her lungs to act normal. She’s pretty sure she's never ran that fast in her life.

“I just helped you beat your personal best.” He threw his arms back behind his head and made himself comfortable on the grass below Danny.

Danny stood upright, hands on hips, “What do you mean?” her eyebrows came together, showing her confusion and hostility.

“I got you to chase me, and we ran the 200 meter, beating your personal best by 2 whole seconds.” He smiled smugly and winked up at the tall red head.

Danny rolled her eyes and turned around and started walking away, “you’re an ass.”

“But a brilliant, totally attractive, helpful one!” He yelled after her, pulling himself up off the grass.

“I hate you.” She called back dryly.  

She shoved his shoulder when he had caught up to her and took off running again. Kirsch laughed, steadied himself and took off running after her.

 _Complicated_.

——

“Hey Hollis!” Danny was walking to the locker room when she saw Laura rushing by, arms full of books.

“Oh, hey Danny!” Laura stopped and hugged her books a little tighter in her arms. Danny was Laura’s Lit TA, and she had a hopeless crush on her from the first day of class. I mean, who wouldn’t? She was tall and beautiful, incredibly smart, athletic, red hair and green eyes and probably one of the nicest people she had met at Silas U.

“Ready for todays quiz?” Danny lifted her arms above her head to stretch, leaning to the right, then left. Her shirt lifting slightly to expose part of her stomach.

Laura tried to control her facial expressions watching the tall girl stretching in front of her, “oh yeah, hopefully! I mean I studied.” She swallowed hard and forced herself to keep eye contact, “your study guide really helped, by the way. So thanks. For that.” She smiled wide as Danny stood up straight, hands on hips.

“No problem, Hollis.” She smiled down at the shorter girl, “well I better..” she pointed towards the locker room, “see you in class later!” and with that she jogged off and into the locker room.

Laura rolled her eyes at herself. _Gosh I’m so awkward sometimes._ She sighed and started walking quickly towards her class again.

——

"That'll be all, Miss Karnstein."

Carmilla walked out into the hallway and shut the office door behind her before rolling her eyes and muttering profanities under her breath.   _She really hated teenagers_. Especially whiny ones.  Apparently one of her students complained about a grade they got on a midterm and because their parents made frequent and large donations to the private school, she was being told she needed to 'fix the situation'. Her response to the principal that "I can't fix the fact that some children are just too lazy to learn" hadn't been appreciated. 

She let out a sigh and headed back to her classroom to gather her things. She loaded the homework to be graded into her bag and grabbed her jacket and started the walk home. 

As she was passing the campus she decided to stop and grade some of the homework at the coffee shop. If she tried to do it all at home she knew she would get distracted and end up having to pull another all nighter. She made her way to the coffee shop, greeting Lafontaine with a nod as she walked in.

“Twice in one day, Karnstein? Do you have a crush on me?” Laf teased as Carmilla made her way over to an empty table and dropped her bag on the chair.

She walked back over to the counter with a scowl on her face, “Very funny. Just give me coffee. All of it.” She leaned her hip against the counter and crossed her arms over her chest and glanced around the room. She didn't usually come by in the afternoon but when she did she always noticed how different it felt than in the morning. Different people, different sounds, colors, atmosphere.. things were just different. She decided she liked the coffee shop better in the morning even though she’d argue she wasn't a morning person. But that would only be half true. She loved _being_ up in the morning but hated _getting_ up in the morning.

Laf set the cup on the counter and pushed it over to Carmilla. Carmilla grabbed a couple bills from the tip jar and handed them to Laf. They just shook their head and put the cash in the register.

“Half of that was mine anyway, remember?” Carmilla said dryly as she lifted the cup to her lips.

“Have you ever actually paid for any of the coffee you drink here?” Laf asked, genuinely curious.

Carmilla could sense the sincerity of the question and it made her chuckle. “No.”  She took another sip then turned to face Lafontaine, “So you ask her out yet?”

Laf’s cheeks started to blush and they nervously fidgeted with their hands, “I dont- I don't know what you’re talking about” They tried to walk away but Carmilla followed along the counter.

“Oh please, I watch you two love birds attempt to flirt practically every morning. You’re both very strange. I think it might actually work if you went for it.” She kept her attention on Laf, waiting for a response.

Laf considered what Carmilla was saying, then shook their head, “No, she’d never go for me” They looked up to see an annoyed expression on Carmilla’s face.

“You’re an idiot.” She rolled her eyes and started walking back to her table. She paused and turned around, Laf was wiping the counter but looked up as carmilla started talking to them again, “She’d be lucky to be with you.” It came out like it pained her to say it, being genuinely nice wasn't something she did often, Laf knew that and it made them appreciate the comment even more.

Their face lit up and they nodded their head. _Maybe we’d both be lucky_.

Carmilla made it back to her table and pulled out the homework she had to grade by the next day, took another sip of her coffee, uncapped her red pen and started marking papers.

\----

"You rocked that quiz Hollis, it was a hard one too!” Danny squeezed Laura's shoulder then let her arm drop back to her side as they walked across campus towards the library together.

Laura gripped the straps to her backpack and pulled them a little tighter, lifting her bag further up her back. She beamed from the compliment as well as the knowledge she just aced her quiz. "Thanks Danny, it's probably all because of your study guide" she smiled up at the red head. 

"Nope, it was all you." Danny nudged Laura's shoulder playfully, "well I have to run to a summer society meeting but maybe we can meet up later?" 

Laura's inner monologue started immediately. _Is she asking me out? Wait, is she flirting with me? How long has this been happening? Have I been flirting back? Do I even know how to flirt? Maybe she's just being nice. She's always nice._

_Gosh I'm so gay._

Luckily Danny had ran off, not waiting for a response cause Laura was still stuck in her own thoughts when she got to the library.  She may have aced her lit quiz but she had another quiz that week in her dreaded history class. So she was back at the library to study, just like she had that morning.  

Laura had been sitting at a table in the library for over an hour, dates and names and places were all starting to melt together, she felt like her brain was going to explode. She let out a groan and dropped her head down onto her book in front of her with a _thud_. “I’m never going to get this” she mumbled to herself, feeling pretty defeated.

She checked her phone, it was just before 6, so she decided it was time to take a break. She headed towards the Coffee shop to grab herself a hot chocolate, cause sugar always sounded like a great idea.  That was information her brain had no problem holding onto.

——

Carmilla dropped her pen on the stack of papers in front of her and stretched her arms up above her head. She twisted in her chair, trying to loosen up the stiffness that had taken over her body as she sat at the table in the coffee shop. She looked around, noticing how empty the room was, it was probably almost closing time for them. She lifted her empty coffee cup and shook it in the air to get Laf’s attention, “one more?” she called across the room.

“Only if you take the stack of books back into the library” Laf called back.

Carmilla looked over to the basket near the door that connected the Coffee Shop and Library. Since students often studied in the coffee shop, the library allowed them to take books with them, as long as before leaving they left them in the basket by the door to be put back on the shelves at the end of the day. The stack wasn't too big that day so Carmilla decided it wouldn't be the worst trade for a cup of coffee.

She grabbed the stack of books and lazily walked into the library. She walked back into a row of shelves and took a deep breath. She loved books. The way they smelled, the feel of the paper, the different colors and textures on the covers, everything. Instead of leaving the books in a pile for the librarian to put away, she decided it would be nice to spend some time alone in the library, so she started navigating her way around the shelves, finding the homes of the books in her arms.

_It was actually quite relaxing._

She had made her way into the history section, she only had a couple books left and she saved these for last on purpose. She held the books in one arm and let her other hand slowly brush along the rows of books as she walked down the isle. Finding the place the last couple books belonged, she started to slide them into place. The last one was on a higher shelf, so she stood on her toes and reached up to try and get it in place.

“Excuse me?”

Carmilla heard her, but chose to ignore her.

“um, excuse me?” she said it a little louder.

Carmilla finally gave up trying to get the last book up on the shelf and rolled her eyes as she came down off her toes, “Are you talking to me?” she said a little annoyed before looking over to where the voice came from.

“Um yes, actually. Can you help me find something?” Laura asked hesitantly. _Why is she being so rude? Isn't it her job to help me?_

Carmilla raised an eyebrow at the blonde but didn't reply.

Laura nervously looked around at the books surrounding them, “I just cant find this one book..” She trailed off, unfolding a piece of paper and holding it out towards Carmilla.

Carmilla was a little confused as to why she was asking her for help but hid it behind her signature smirk. She glanced down at the paper then back up at Laura. “You’re in luck, cutie.” She lifted the book she had failed to get on the top shelf and twisted her wrist, waving the book in front of Laura’s face.

Laura reached out to grab the book but Carmilla pulled it back towards her before Laura could take hold of it, “Not so fast. What do I get out of this trade?” Carmilla's voice lowered and sounded thick and sultry. She trailed her eyes over Laura, making it obvious she was looking her up and down.

Laura's stomach suddenly tightened and she could feel the back of her neck warming “um, I have hot chocolate?” Laura slowly said as she held up the fresh cup in her hand, keeping her eyes locked on Carmilla's.

Carmilla narrowed her eyes like she was considering it, watching Laura’s facial expression go from nervous to a little confused back to nervous again. She gave Laura a crooked smile and reached out the book in front of her. Laura took it from her hesitantly. “Lets just say, you owe me one.”

Laura bit her bottom lip and nodded slowly in agreement before turning and walking away. She stopped at the end of the isle and looked back at Carmilla, a shy smile on her face. Carmilla winked and Laura rolled her eyes and chuckled before disappearing around the corner.

Carmilla left the library and gathered up her things. She grabbed the cup of coffee Laf had promised her and walked out the door and headed home.

She might have to start stopping by in the afternoon more often.


	3. Cupcake

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Laf and Perry have a date, plans for the big campus halloween party start, and more hollstein flirting.

Carmilla walked in the coffee shop and stomped her boots on the mat angrily. She grabbed the edges of her jacket and shook it in her hands, water dropping off of her onto the floor around her.  She was on her way home from work when it had started pouring outside.  She reached up and ran her hand through her wet hair, pushing the wet curls out of her face. _I hate weather._

She immediately walked over to the couch by the fireplace and stripped off her jacket and fell back into the cushions. She let her head fall back and closed her eyes.  There was no way in hell she was going to keep walking home in the rain.

Suddenly the cushion next to her sank a bit and someone was poking her leg.

“Go away.” she grunted without moving.

The poking continued for a moment then suddenly she could smell the strong smell of Coffee and could feel the warmth close to her face.  She opened one eye to find the source and saw Lafontaine waving a hot cup in front of her face. She lifted her head and raised an eyebrow at them.

“Whats the catch?” she narrowed her eyes to study Laf’s face.

They gasped mockingly, pulling a hand up to press against their chest in fake surprise, “I would never use coffee as a bargaining chip. I cant believe you would suggest such a thing”  they smiled wide back at Carmilla’s wary stare.

She rolled her eyes, “Whatever. You know my weakness.” She grabbed the coffee and took a big gulp feeling the hot coffee travel through her body, “what do you want?”

Laf’s smile dropped slightly, "Elsie hasn't shown up for her shift today and the afternoon rush could start any minute and I need some help."

Carmilla shook her head strongly and sunk further into the couch, "no. no way.  I drink the coffee, I don't make it."

“Please! You know I would ask _anyone_ else if I could. I'll make everything, you just have to take people's money and not yell at anyone." They clasped their hands together in front of them in a pleading manner and pouted in an attempt to guilt Carmilla into helping.  Carmilla let out a groan and rolled her eyes.  LaF knew they had won and hopped up off the couch and pulled the very unhappy girl up with them. 

LaF was right. As soon as they were both behind the counter the coffee shop came alive.  It was extra busy today, probably from people trying to escape the rain and warm up. People shuffled through, grabbing coffee, standing by the fire, shaking water from jackets and stomping it off of shoes. 

Customer after customer ordered coffee and Carmilla would call back names of drinks, getting more annoyed with each one.  She was shoving some cash in the register when she noticed Laura walk in. Same skip in her step and wide grin as always. Even with the rain she was still exuding sunshine. 

"Hey LaF. I need a hot chocolate and break for 5 minutes" she called back, keeping her eyes on Laura. 

"No! Don't you dare leave that counter with the line that long!" They were clearly flustered with how busy it was and being short staffed.  Sure Carmilla had agreed to help but let's be honest, she was barely doing anything. LaF was just glad she hadn't hopped over the counter and attacked anyone yet.  They looked out to inspect the line and saw Perry a couple customers back. _Actually, maybe Carmilla taking a small break would be a good thing._  They brought a hot chocolate up to Carmilla and pushed her away from the register, “Go, but be quick”

Carmilla grabbed the hot cup and walked around the counter towards Laura. She was in her usual place, sitting at a table with papers scattered across it, face in a book, a confused _yet adorable_ expression on her face. Carmilla sat down across from her and set the cup on the table. Laura immediately looked up at Carmilla and smiled. Then she narrowed her eyes at the cup that had been placed in front of her, “I thought _I_ owed _you_?” She looked up at carmilla skeptically.

Carmilla smirked and leaned back against the chair, throwing her elbow over the backrest casually, sinking lazily into the chair. “you do” was all she said, keeping her eyes locked on Laura. She noticed the slight blush on Laura’s cheeks and it suddenly made her smile. Not the flirty one she was so used to using on girls, but a small, honest smile. _what the hell?_

Laura felt herself start to blush under Carmilla’s intense gaze. She nervously looked down at the table and fumbled with her papers.

“Hello girls!” Perry greeted the pair, pulling Carmilla’s gaze from Laura and Laura’s attention from the papers scattered on the table.

“Perry! Hi!” Laura said a little too quickly and a lot too loudly. Clearly she was flustered.

Carmilla chuckled and shook her head, and glanced back over to the counter where Laf was frantically taking orders and making drinks. She sighed and stood up, pulling the chair out and motioning for Perry to take a seat. She walked around the table, winking at Laura as she passed her, “Later, cupcake.”

Laura turned to watch her walk back to the counter then turned around to look at Perry. She was holding her hot chocolate, smile even bigger than the previous day, she looked like she was about to burst with happiness. She was already a fairly high strung person so when she was excited about something it was like she practically buzzed with energy. Her curly hair seemed to catch the vibration of her feelings and actually grew in electrified curls. Laura raised an eyebrow curiously at her and thats all it took for her to break her silence.

“I have a date!” she whisper-yelled at Laura as she leaned across the table.

“Eeee! Thats so exciting Perry! Lafontaine??” she squealed back at Perry

Perry nodded energetically, sitting up straight and grinning ear to ear.

——

Carmilla walked back behind the counter and was greeted by a glare from a blonde that looked familiar.

“Hey Carmilla, Elsie actually showed up so you can head out if you want” Laf nodded towards the blonde and went back to making drinks.

_Elsie. How do I know… oh. Shit._

“Carmilla.” Elsie greeted her coldly

“Elsie. How are you?” Carmilla answered back, not really caring that the blonde seemed fairly put off by her presence. “Haven't seen you since..” _since we made out in the bathroom of the English building last year and then never talked again_ “..well, its been a while. Hasn't it?”

Elsie rolled her eyes and turned her attention back to the line in front of her.

Carmilla tried to hide her smirk, she was used to getting that kind of reaction. In her defense, she was always straight forward with girls. She always told them she wasn't in it for anything more than a little fun, she wasn't the relationship type. Girls always said that was fine, then got upset when it turned out to be the truth. Carmilla wasn't really good with dealing with emotions. Other peoples or even her own. So keeping herself disconnected from other people just worked for her. Occasionally she would feel bad but for the most part she figured as long as she warned them, it wasn't her fault when they got upset later.

She walked back over to her stuff next to the couch and threw her jacket on, grabbed her beanie from her bag and fixed it on her head. She slung her bag over her shoulder and headed for the door. She had dealt with way too many people that afternoon, she was ready to go home. Even if it meant walking in the rain.

————

“You cant be serious?!” Danny slammed her hands on the table in front of her.

“Calm down summer psycho” Kirsch sat back in his chair and folded his arms across his chest, “It’s just a party, don't be so serious.”

“It’s degrading.” She crossed her own arms and glared across the table.

“ooookay, maybe we should just..” Laura tried to break up the argument about to take place but was quickly interrupted by Kirsch.

“Look, we have to come up with a theme for the Halloween party, so if you have a better idea that doesn't make it totally lame, then we can do whatever.” He rolled his eyes, “As long as I get to dance with some hotties I don't care what the theme is.”

“You are such a chauvinistic-" she stopped herself and took a deep breathe and clenched her firsts on top of the table, "you know what, maybe the summer society should just have their own party without you and your frat-daddy frats!” Danny gripped the table again, trying to control her anger.

“Ok, no, no seriously—“ Laura lifted her hand as if she was trying to create an actual barrier between the two.

“You wouldn’t!” Kirsch sat up tall, almost like you'd imagine an animal trying to seem big to scare off other animals in the wild.

“Try me popped collar!” Danny puffed up her own chest, matching his height and stiffness. They were both leaning over the table, their faces close together as if trying to threaten each other in any way they could think of.

“Okay! stop it! stop it, both of you!” Laura grabbed both their shoulders and pulled them back, forcing the space between them to grow wider. “I get it! You both want it to be a good party, but has it occurred to either of you that we have been sitting here for over an hour and haven't planned ANYTHING for the actual party?”

“He’s the one that started it!” Danny quickly got defensive at being scolded by the tiny girl.

“He started it?!” Laura scoffed, “really?”

“She’s the one that started it” Kirsch mumbled under his breathe as he sat back and crossed his arms, looking hurt.

“Not helping!” Laura snapped back at him.

She held up her hands towards the two sharing the table with her as a gesture to keep them silent. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, letting it out slowly. “All I’m saying, is the useful thing to do might be to skip this smack down in the middle of the coffee shop and figure out a plan for this party.” She said it as calmly as she could, “I did not get up at 6 am to be the referee to this stupid argument. I need to study for my history class. So go figure this out.” She looked at them both and when they both looked down a little embarrassed but didn't move she added, “like, right now!” she raised her eyebrows and shook her head, completely blown away by how her morning had gone so far. But the pair did get up and walk out of the coffee shop together.

Carmilla had been quietly observing from her spot on the couch. She didn't catch the whole thing but was greatly entertained by what she was able to watch. She was enjoying watching the amazon turn more and more red every time the big puppy dog opened his mouth. And every time Laura got cut off, she made this bunched up face, _it was adorable_.

As soon as Danny and Kirsch left, Laura let out a big sigh and laid her head down on her crossed arms on the table. Those two drove her nuts. They drove each other nuts. Its amazing they hadn't killed each other by now. She took a second to just breathe before sitting back up and pulling out her history notes. She had to keep studying if she was going to pass this quiz at the end of the week.

She had been going over things, writing notes, re writing notes, reading passages, highlighting passages, rereading passages for what felt like forever. She was ready to give up when someone placed a cup of hot chocolate on the table. This time accompanied with a cupcake.

Laura smiled without looking up, hoping it was her mystery girl, Carmilla. She had seen her every day so far that week. Every time she was about to walk into the coffee shop she would feel her stomach flutter at the thought of her. She knew absolutely nothing about Carmilla, but she was beautiful, and although grumpy about it, had been helpful the other day with the book she was looking for in the library. She gave her free hot chocolate, which was, well, awesome. And surprisingly sweet for someone like her.

Laura finally looked up and was met with Carmilla’s smile. It was small, but it was there. And there was something about her eyes that morning. They seemed softer, and completely focused on her. Laura smiled wide up at her and was about to say something but Carmilla turned and walked away before she could. Her eyebrows came together, confused. Usually Carmilla had some smart ass comment, or a food related nickname, or a flirty wink that accompanied the cup of hot chocolate she gave her every day. _But not today?_ She turned quickly in her chair, almost falling completely out of it, trying to keep her eyes on Carmilla. Carmilla just threw on her jacket while Laf spoke to her by the door.

Laf handed her a warm cup of coffee after she had her jacket on, “See you tomorrow, bright and early.”

Carmilla just gave them a nod as she brought the cup to her lips and walked out the door into the cold morning air.

Laura turned back around to face her table and looked down and chuckled to herself. “cupcake” she whispered with a smile as she picked it up and took a bite.

——

Carmilla had gathered her things, ready to head to work. After the hilarious morning entertainment she felt like the day was going to be a good one. _But first…_ She cut the line again and asked Laf for a hot chocolate. Laf handed one to her and went back to helping other customers. Before Carmilla left the counter she saw the plate of cupcakes in the baked good case. She smiled to herself as she walked back and picked one out and put on a plate.

After setting the hot chocolate and cupcake in front of Laura, she saw Laura smile. Something tugged inside her, she wasn't sure what. But once again, she couldn't help the smile forming on her lips. _How does she do that?_

_Shit._ _Do I actually like this girl?_

Laura looked up at her, smiling wide and Carmilla felt the tug again. Laura looked like she was about to say something but the idea that she actually liked this girl, and didn't just find her intriguing made her panic slightly. She turned and walked away before Laura could get a word out. _She needed to figure this out._

She took a coffee from Laf and left for work in a hurry.

——

Laf was a mess. They had asked Perry out the day before, and now they were sure their chest was going to explode at any second. Perry usually came in to study with Laura but she hadn't that morning. _Was she ok? Was she avoiding them? Maybe she changed her mind and didn't know how to tell them?_ Then suddenly, there she was. Standing in line with the rest of the afternoon rush, _looking beautiful and happy and, and.._ _I need a chill pill._ They took a deep breathe as Perry stepped up to the counter.

“Good afternoon, Lafontaine.” Perry said, smiling warmly.

“oh, uh, hi. Perry. Hi.” They nearly dropped a cup full of coffee on themselves and the counter, they were so nervous.

Perry just smiled wider, “The usual, please.” she clasped her hands together in front of her.

Laf called back for two hot chocolates, “More studying with Laura?” they tried to sound calm but internally it was like someone had mixed Hydrogen Sulfide and Nitric Acid just to watch them explode for kicks and giggles.

She nodded quickly “Her quiz is on Friday so I’m trying to help her get ready. Although I did miss this mornings session due to a dorm emergency.” her expression changed to one of annoyance. Laf was just glad it wasn't because of them.

Laf smiled and placed Perry’s order in front of her, “It’s on the house.”

Perry nodded a thank you and smiled wide before turning and heading for Laura’s table like usual. She stopped a few feet from the counter and turned around, “I’m excited for our date this weekend” Her eyes locked with Laf’s and immediately the chemical eruption happening in Laf’s stomach calmed down and all they could do was smile goofily back at Perry.

——

The rest of the week went on with everyone following their usual routines.

Carmilla would show up in the morning before Laf. Be grumpy and ask for coffee. Then she would sit by the fire and watch people till she had to leave for work.

Laura and Perry would meet up to study. Perry trying her best to help, and Laura seeming to get more an more confused as the week went on.

Danny and Kirsch had actually stopped fighting long enough to come up with a theme and a basic plan for the Halloween party coming up for the Zetas and Summer Society. It was actually one of the biggest parties of the year and everyone on campus was getting really excited for it.

Laf was trying to keep up with homework, the Coffee Shop, and not die of nervousness waiting for their date with Perry to finally get there.

The one thing that had changed in the ‘usual routine’ of things, was Carmilla.  
 After realizing she didn't just find Laura interesting, but that she might actually like her, she was different. The last time she had actually _liked_ a girl, it didn't turn out so well. Honestly, she didn't _want_ to like Laura. She was comfortable with how things had been going. She didn't hook up with people often but when it did happen, it wasn't a huge deal. No real attachments, no drama, no mess. _No heartbreak_.

Plus, Laura wasn't even Carmilla’s usual type, which was frustrating. She didn't get the responses she was used to. Its like she suddenly forgot how to flirt. The skills she had and so easily used on other girls, were ineffective when it came to Laura. Its like she actually had to _try_ to get her attention. And then on the flip side, Carmilla’s usual calm and ‘too cool’ demeanor was threatened every time Laura smiled at her. Its like she no longer had control of her face. Every time Laura smiled at her, she wanted to smile back. It was very confusing. She wanted Laura’s attention, and couldn't help but watch her across the coffee shop every day. But at the same time, hated that she felt that way and did everything she could to not let Laura affect her.

So far, trying to get her attention and watching her was winning over the whole, ‘trying not to like her’ thing. Carmilla showed up every morning actually looking forward to seeing Laura. Even though she never actually talked to her for real. She would just watch her study from across the room. Her scrunched up face and the way she flailed her arms around when she was talking always made Carmilla smile. Every morning before Carmilla left to walk the rest of the way to work, she would set a cup of hot chocolate in front of Laura and walk away. Never letting her actually say anything.

Every morning Laura would give her self a pep talk as she walked to the coffee shop.   
_Today I will talk to Carmilla. Maybe_.   
Its a good thing she wanted to go into journalism and not motivational speaking.

Every day that week Carmilla had given her a cup of hot chocolate and left before she could say anything. It was infuriating. _What was this girls angle?_

Maybe Friday would be different.

Carmilla was sitting on the couch at the back of the room sipping on her coffee when Laura walked in with Perry. She looked more flustered than usual and her smile wasn't quite what Carmilla was used to seeing. It actually wasn't there at all. Carmilla felt the familiar tug in her stomach that she had gotten used to over the past week at seeing Laura. She hated seeing her like that and suddenly wanted to find a way to make her smile again. Maybe it was time to stop ignoring the tug and do more than just give her hot chocolate.

——

“Seriously Perry, I feel like my brain is mush.” She dropped down onto the chair and put her elbows on the table and let her head fall into her hands.

“I’m sorry, sweetie. But after today it shouldn't be so bad. I have a good feeling about today.” Perry responded to Laura but was watching the red head behind the counter. She was extremely excited for their date. She didn't know Laf very well but they were always so sweet and kind to everyone, and always made her smile. Perry knew she was pretty uptight about most things, but around Laf she always felt more relaxed.

Laura sat up and pulled her notebook out. It was the last morning she could study, her quiz was later that day and even though she had spent hours going over her notes, she didn't feel ready at all.

Perry looked at Laura with a sympathetic smile, “I’ll just go get us some treats” and went to stand in line. Her smile widened with every step that got her closer to the counter.

Carmilla passed by Perry and was given a warm smile from the red head. Carmilla raised an eyebrow and just kept walking towards Laura. She was talking herself into actually sitting down and talking to Laura this time when suddenly the door burst open and two giants came rushing in, shoving one another.

“Hollis!” Danny was the first in, doing her best to hold kirsch behind her, “Please tell this idiot that ‘bobbing for broccoli’ is a terrible idea!”

Upon seeing the amazon and puppy shoving their way over to Laura, Carmilla changed her course and walked back over to her spot on the couch, trying not to be obvious about paying attention to the idiots headed towards Laura.

“Shut up! Its an alteration! That makes it cool.” Kirsch retorted, grabbing Danny's arm and pulling her back quickly so he could sit down at the table with Laura first.

Laura looked at the pair and pushed her eyebrows together confusedly, “Do you mean alliteration, Kirsch?”

Kirsch mirrored her confused look, “uh, maybe?”

Danny scoffed and rolled her eyes as she sat down with them.

“Look guys, can we do this later? I really need to study right now. I have a quiz in my history class today and I’m no where near prepared.”

Carmilla's ears perked up at Laura’s mention of history class. _That might be her in._

Danny and Kirsch stood up and went to stand in line with Perry, leaving Laura at the table, still distraught about her quiz that day.

Carmilla checked her watch and realized that staying to watch tweedle-dum and tweedle-dumber had made her late. _Looks like she wasn't going to get to make her move that morning, after all_. She jumped up off the couch and grabbed her stuff. She was almost to the door when she realized she was still holding the hot chocolate she had gotten for Laura, so she turned around and walked back over to her table. Coming from the doorway, Laura's back was to her and she got an idea.

She reached the cup over Laura's shoulder from behind her, bringing her face down next to her ear, “Good luck on your quiz today, cupcake.”

Her voice came out low and raspy. No one should be allowed to sound that sexy that early in the morning. Laura felt her breath on her ear as she spoke and a shiver ran through her body. She took in a sharp breathe and turned to face Carmilla.

“Thanks” she said quietly, focused on Carmilla’s dark eyes. That soft look was there again that morning and she couldn't help but smile as a blush took over her cheeks.

Carmilla’s lips turned up slightly, then she quickly turned and left. She stepped outside into the cold morning air and watched the air leaving her lungs turn into a cloud in front of her. The tug she felt being that close to Laura was still there as she left campus and she knew, she was in deep already.

But on the bright side, _she had made Laura smile._


	4. Rainy Day Dates

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Laura has her quiz and might need some extra help. Luckily someone offers..  
> Laferry date.  
> Danny and Kirsch are.. well.. Danny and Kirsch.

Carmilla watched the clock from her desk at the front of the room.  She had practically been counting down the minutes till school was over since she had got there that morning.  She couldn't help but wonder how things went for Laura and was hoping she would see her if she stopped at the coffee shop on her way home. That would require the school day to end though and that wasn't happening for another 32 minutes.

"Uh, Miss K?"

Carmilla turned her head away from the direction of the clock with a scowl on her face to look at the teenager standing in front of her.  She quickly changed her expression at seeing the students eyes widen in surprise with how pissed she looked.  She still looked annoyed at the interruption of her clock watching, but no longer homicidal. 

“What’s up?" She asked casually. 

"I'm done." The student said hesitantly, handing over the worksheet she had given the class. 

Carmilla sighed. Looks like she would actually have to pay attention to her class for the next 30 minutes until the bell rang.  She grabbed the paper and stood up and walked around her desk to address her class, "alright guys, anyone else done?"

\----

"Lawrence! Bro! Wait up!" Kirsch grabbed his bag off the ground next to the bench he had been sitting on when he saw the red head walking across the grass. He slung one strap over his shoulder and jogged to fall in line next to Danny. 

"What's up, _bro_?" She rolled her eyes and kept walking. 

"We need to talk about our awesome party." He smiled wide and picked up his pace to keep up with her. "Jake was wondering if there was going to be a costume contest and I was like, ‘totally bro’, but then thought I should check with you." He looked over with a questioning look on his face.

Danny just glanced over at him but didn't say anything.

“We can be the judges! I’ll judge the ladies,” He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively, “and you can judge..” He trailed off as Danny shot him a glare “..the ladies, also?” His eyebrows lifted, waiting to see what Danny was going to do.

“You’re disgusting.” She rolled her eyes and punched his shoulder, hard. “But yes, there will be a prize for the best costume.”

"Sweet!" Kirsch lifted a hand to rub his shoulder where Danny had hit him. “Why are you so violent?” he smiled playfully over at the red head, “Want to grab some coffee? My treat.”

Danny shrugged and they started heading towards the coffee shop talking about the party and costumes.

——

“Great! I’ll just come by tonight around 7 then?” Perry smile wide, gripping the cup in her hand.

“Thats perfect. I’ll close up shop and be ready to go by then.” They smiled back warmly, “I’m real excited” Laf fiddled with the buttons on the register trying not to let their nerves show.

“Me too” Perry smiled bashfully as her cheeks started to pink. Then she turned and went to sit at a table to wait for Laura. She should be there any minute with the results from her quiz and Perry wanted to be prepared to either celebrate with or console Laura no matter what the outcome was.

She sat, with perfect posture, hands folded in front of her when Danny and Kirsch sat down at the table with her. They were actually getting along today and it made Perry smile. Maybe today was going to be a good day all around. She had her date that night with Laf, Danny and Kirsch were being friendly, maybe Laura aced her quiz!

She was quickly given the answer as Laura came through the door, shoulders slouched, head hanging low, her feet shuffling slowly towards the group at the table.

“Hey Hollis!” Danny smiled wide at seeing the blonde, not noticing her demeanor at first.

“oh, hey Danny” Laura tried to smile but it came out forced. Usually seeing Danny made her smile right away and gave her stomach a little flutter, side effects from the crush still in effect, but today it just wasn't there.

Danny glanced over at Kirsch and Perry when she caught on to the unusual gloomy mood Laura was clearly in. Perry made a sad face and mouthed ‘her quiz was today’ to the pair. Danny and Kirsch both widened their eyes in realization.

“It’s ok little hottie. You’ll totally kill the next one” Kirsch stood up and gave Laura a tight hug. Laura just let her ams hang at her sides while Kirsch squeezed her tight into his chest. Danny stood and pulled Kirsch off of her and put a hand on Laura’s shoulder and gave it a squeeze.

“yeah, its just one quiz.” She smiled encouragingly at the shorter girl.

“Thanks, guys.” Laura sighed heavily and forced another smile. She glanced at Perry, “I think I’m just going to head into the library today, but I’ll catch you guys later.” She grabbed the straps of her backpack, dropped her head and walked slowly through the door into the library and disappeared into the isles of books.

——

Carmilla forced herself to slow her stride as she walked through campus towards the coffee shop. She had finally admitted to herself she had what could be called a ‘crush’ on Laura, even though she hated that word. But she refused to act like an idiot because of it. That meant she wasn't going to suddenly be some sappy love sick girl, meaning she had to fight the urge to run to the coffee shop to see if Laura was there.

As soon as she could see the coffee shop she felt her heart jump and her stomach tug. God she hated and loved that feeling all at the same time. She pushed through the door and looked around but didn't see her anywhere. The puppy dog and amazon were sitting at the table with Lafs ginger crush and she wondered if they were there for Laura too. She slipped her jacket off and walked towards the counter.

Laf immediately handed her a cup of coffee, “Dude. you have to help me.” they said with a concerned face.

“What are you talking about?” Carmilla asked dryly as she took a sip of coffee and scanned the room one more time for Laura.

“No really. Pay attention to me.” Laf spoke frantically, leaning across the counter towards Carmilla.

“Fine, fine. what?” Carmilla stopped looking around the room and turned to give Laf her attention. She raised her eyebrows and gave Laf an annoyed look as she waited for them to tell her what was going on.

“Its tonight.”

Carmilla’s eyebrows came together in confusion, “riiight.” she had no clue what they were talking about.

“The date!” They whispered loudly across the counter, eyes wide.

“Right.” Carmilla stated with more sureness this time. “And you need my help, why?” She brought the cup up to her mouth again.

“I’m freaking out. thats why.” They sighed and gave Carmilla a pleading look.

“You’ll be fine. The hardest part is over. She already said yes, that means she likes you. So don’t stress. Just go be your weird self and have a good time.” She said it so casually, like dating was the easiest thing on the planet.

Laf just let out a sigh, “you’re right.” then nodded confidently to themselves. They watched as Carmilla turned to scan the room again, “She’s in the library.” they said in a teasing voice as they readied a hot chocolate.

Carmilla quickly turned back to them, “who is?” she narrowed her eyes at Laf. They were smirking at her. Then she noticed the hot chocolate on the counter, “Shut up” she glared at Laf and grabbed the hot chocolate and walked away. She dropped her stuff on the side of the couch where it wouldn't be seen or disturbed by anyone in the coffee shop and she made her way into the library.

She slowly walked down the isles, brushing the tips of her fingers along the books as she did. She got to the end of her third or fourth isle and saw Laura. Immediately her stomach tightened and her heart rate picked up slightly. Laura was sitting at a table in the corner of the library. No one else was around and she had her head down in her arms. She didn't have any books or notes out like usual, just one paper sitting on the table next to her head. Suddenly Carmilla was conflicted about going over to her. She didn't seem like she was in a good mood and probably wanted to be left alone. But at the same time, Carmilla wanted to see her smile, and more than that, wanted to be the reason for her smile.

_When did she get so gross and sappy?_

She slowly approached the girl, trying to make enough noise so Laura would know she was there without startling her. She got to the table Laura was at but the blonde hadn't moved. Her head was still down in her arms and Carmilla could hear her mumbling something to herself quietly.

Carmilla glanced over at the paper next to Laura, “ouch”. Her eyes went wide when she realized she said it out loud and Laura’s head shot up off the table to look at her. Laura looked from Carmilla to her quiz sitting on the table and back at Carmilla.

Carmilla set the hot chocolate down in front of Laura and grabbed the chair across from the blonde and leaned on her hands. “Quiz didn't go so well?” she asked casually.

“what gave you that idea?” Laura huffed sarcastically and dropped her head back onto her arms, avoiding eye contact. She couldn't believe that after studying for hours she had still managed to fail her quiz. And on top of that she was completely embarrassed that of all people, Carmilla, the gorgeous mystery girl, had seen her terrible score.  

Carmilla studied the girl sulking in front of her for a moment while trying to decide what to do next.  It clearly wasn't the right time to flirt, but she felt bad just leaving her there with how upset she seemed. Once again she was completely out of her element with his girl.  She took a deep breath, "you know, I could help you with that if you wanted" she said it quietly, almost like she surprised herself by making the offer.  

Laura stiffened, she was half hoping that Carmilla had walked away but suddenly very glad she hadn't. Her head shot up, a surprised look on her face, "seriously?!"

Carmilla kept a straight face and shrugged like it wasn't a big deal. "History right? Who's the instructor?"

Laura sat up completely, a small but hopeful smile on her face, "Professor Fields.”

"Ah. There's you're problem" she gripped the back of the chair and pulled it out from under the table and sat down across from Laura. "Fields is a shitty teacher. It's his fault you're having a hard time, not yours."

Laura's eyes suddenly started to well up with tears.  This class had been stressing her out all semester. For Carmilla to give her the courtesy of telling her it was bad teaching and not her being stupid that was making it so hard overwhelmed her with relief and gratitude. It made her want to cry to just finally let go of all the frustration she had been feeling. 

Carmilla saw her eyes getting watery and leaned over the table in Laura's direction, sliding her hands over towards her, tapping on the top of the table, "woah, no, no, don't do that"  she was trying to sound nice but emotions freaked her out and it came out sounding a little panicked. "I know I’m not the best at being nice, but I didn't mean to make you cry!" She said quietly across the table to the blonde, this time her voice sounding sincere.

Laura let out a chuckle and lifted her hands to cover her face. She wiped her eyes and looked back at Carmilla. She took a big breathe and let out a sigh, "you _are_ nice." She smiled at Carmilla and let her hands fall down on the table.  They landed on top of Carmilla's and both girls froze and looked down to their overlapping hands. 

Neither of them moved, they just watched the pile of hands in the center of the table. Carmilla delicately moved her thumb to stroke along the side of one of Laura’s hands. Laura’s lips twitched into a small smile, then she bit her bottom lip to keep the smile from growing wider. Carmilla stopped moving her thumb and looked up to see the blush growing on Laura’s cheeks. Laura tried to hide her shy smile and slowly pulled her hands away from Carmilla’s and put them on her lap as she cleared her throat, "so are you a history major or something? I should probably find out if you even know this stuff before I agree to let you help me."

Carmilla chuckled and pulled her own hands back and leaned back in her chair. "Something like that. Just trust me, creampuff.” She studied the blonde across from her. Her eyes weren't watery anymore but they still looked a little sad and somewhat tired. "Plus, you owe me one, remember? I'm cashing it in."

Laura looked at her amusedly, "so me letting you tutor me in history, is me paying you back?" She shook her head and smiled, "that makes absolutely no sense."

Carmilla smirked, "it doesn't have to make sense."

Silence filled the library around them as they looked at each other, tension definitely building.  Carmilla was turning out to be nothing like Laura expected and it just made her curious to get to know her more. 

Carmilla was trying to hide how excited she was about helping Laura.  She loved history, and now she had an actual excuse to spend time with her.  No more just dropping cups of hot chocolate on her table and leaving.

“Before you take on the train wreck that is my history grade I should let you know, If I don't get an A on the test before thanksgiving break then I’ll fail the class and have to retake it.” She pouted and took a deep breath, “So yeah, no pressure.”

Carmilla chuckled and gave Laura a reassuring smile, “Don't worry, by the time that test rolls around, you will be able to teach that idiot Professor Fields a thing or two.” She winked at Laura and stood up. She was walking away when Laura called after her.

“Can we start tomorrow?” Laura asked eagerly.

Carmilla turned around and leaned her shoulder against one of the shelves of books. It wasn't even halloween yet but if Laura wanted to start right now, she wasn't going to say no. Carmilla had no idea how this was actually going to go but she hoped if they started now she would still get to be seeing Laura by the time thanksgiving came around. Before she could answer, Laura nervously started one of her rants. Overthinking things and speaking her entire thought process was a special gift of hers.

“Or is that not good? You probably have work. Do you have to work? If you don't work you probably don't want to study on your day off. And its Saturday tomorrow and you probably already have plans. You seem like the type to have plans. Do you? Have plans I mean?”

Carmilla raised an eyebrow at the blonde that stopped ranting to take a breathe. Laura looked back at her nervously.

“As luck would have it, I don’t work tomorrow. And, my plans are with you, cupcake.” She pushed herself off the bookshelf and took one last look at Laura and the smile stretched across her face before she turned around and started down the isle again. “Be here at noon tomorrow.” she called back to Laura with a wave over her shoulder.

She walked back into the Coffee Shop and over to grab her stuff. She was putting her jacket on when she looked out the window and saw that it had started to rain again. _I hate weather_. She threw her bag over her shoulder and walked over to the counter where Laf was fidgeting with coffee cups and lids, obviously nervous about their date later.

“Calm down and give me a coffee.” Carmilla rolled her eyes and pulled her beanie out of her bag and fixed it on her head while Laf filled her cup. A smile crept onto her face, s _he had a study date with Laura_ _tomorrow_. Laf set the cup in front of her and forced a smile. Carmilla shook her head and grabbed the cup. The idea of hanging out with Laura must have put her in a real good mood because instead of the snarky comment she would usually make, she decided on something else entirely.

“You’re awesome, Laf. She’d be an idiot not to see that.”

They gave Carmilla a real smile this time, standing up a little taller, their confidence returning. “You _do_ have a crush on me, don’t you?” Laf teased the brunette.

Carmilla rolled her eyes and lifted her middle finger towards Lafontaine as she walked out of the coffee shop.

——

Laf was wiping the counter off when they heard the door open. They turned around and saw Perry walk through the door and immediately smiled. They had been nervous the entire time they were cleaning up and closing down the register but now that Perry was standing in front of them, looking amazing, their nerves melted away and they were just excited.

“I’m a few minutes early” Perry returned Laf’s smile and walked across the room to where they were. “Is there anything I can do to help?”

“I’m actually all finished, so perfect timing.” They tossed the rag over to the sink and brushed their hands together as they walked around the counter to greet Perry. They stopped right in front of her and suddenly weren't sure what to do. _Hand shake? Hug? High five? Come on brain, work_. They both just looked at each other for a moment before Laf cleared their throat and brought a hand up to rub the back of their neck. “So I had a really great idea for tonight but..” They trailed off and looked outside, “The rain kind of ruined it” they dropped their hand down to their side and laughed nervously.

Perry just smiled, “Well, we could share a brownie and talk until the rain dies down a bit?”

Laf smiled wide, “I love sharing brownies” They pulled a chair out for Perry to sit then ran behind the counter. They came back a minute later with a plate of baked goods and two hot chocolates and set them on the table.

It grew darker outside as the night went on and the rain showed no sign of letting up. But that didn't bother the pair in the Coffee Shop. They sat at the table talking easily. It was as if they had known each other their whole lives. After a couple hours, they had finished their hot chocolate and plate of goodies so they moved over to the couch near the fire and kept talking. Laf had turned off the main lights after a few students had tried to get in, thinking they were still open. After that just the light from the fire and a few lamps lit the room. It was cozy and comfortable. Even though the rain had thrown off the original plan, the night turned out perfect.

Around 1 am Laf offered to walk Perry back to the dorm she was in charge of. They found an umbrella in the lost and found box behind the counter and after shutting off the last of the lights and locking up the coffee shop, they made their way through the rain, hand in hand, across campus to the dorms.


	5. Getting hotter

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Laura and Carmilla have their first study session.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am most definitely not an expert on history so... sorry if my facts aren't the most factual haha

"Hrmmnnnnooo" Carmilla groaned and buried her head further into her pillow, trying to ignore the alarm going off on her phone.  She blindly reached across the bed to find her phone, patting along the mattress till she found the source of the sound.  She hit the snooze button and curled up again, pulling the covers over her head.  She was about to slip back into sleep when she suddenly remembered why she had set the alarm in the first place.  Her eyes slowly opened and she took a deep breathe. She stretched her body out trying to wake herself up more and threw the covers off her body quickly.  She immediately regretted it as the cold air outside of her cozy bed hit her body and immediately gave her goosebumps. 

She tucked her body into a ball but didn't pull the covers back over her.  She knew if she did she wouldn't get up and she had to get ready for her study date with Laura. She rolled to the edge of her bed and dropped slowly off the side landing on her knees, letting her arms and head drag along the mattress. _Why is morning a thing?_ She felt the weight of her body crumple the papers scattered across the floor that she had put next to her bed the night before. She folded her body over the side of the mattress, letting her arms and head stretch across it before pushing herself up to her feet. She slowly walked into the bathroom and turned on the shower, letting the water heat up. She placed her hands against the edge of the sink and gently leaned on them, yawning she glanced at the clock, 10:00am. Plenty of time to get ready and still have time to go over some more of her notes. The bathroom was starting to fill with steam from the hot shower so she pulled off her t-shirt and underwear, dropping them onto the floor and stepped into the hot water.

——

Laura sat at one of the tables in the coffee shop bouncing her leg up and down quickly. She had a cup of hot chocolate in her hands and had already eaten the three cookies she ordered. She had meant to save one for Carmilla but that didn't happen. She checked the time again, 11:45am. Yeah ok, she was pretty early but she was oddly excited to study. Yesterday in the library she had accidentally pretty much held Carmilla's hand and when it happened she felt a surge of energy flow through her body. It was kind of like what she felt when Danny would touch her shoulder or give her a hug. But this was different.  She didn't really know Carmilla that well so its not like she could _like_ her though. _Could she_?

12:00 came around and Laura was on her second cup of cocoa and Carmilla wasn't there still. _Was she supposed to be in the library where they had talked yesterday?_ She was sure Carmilla would want coffee first or at least would probably grab a hot chocolate for Laura like she always did, so she thought waiting in the coffee shop would be a safe bet. Her leg was bouncing even quicker when she saw the dark haired girl walk up the step and open the door. Her leg immediately stopped bouncing and she couldn't help it that her jaw dropped. She looked.. _wow_. Usually Carmilla was dressed in what could be considered business casual. _Hot business casual_. She always looked amazing, and somehow professional and punk at the same time. Honestly, she should be in fashion magazines with how she looked on a daily basis. But today she was just casual casual and damn, it looked good on her.

She had on black jeans, ripped at the knees, a black t-shirt that clung to her body in all the right places, and her black leather jacket. Her hair fell in loose curls over her shoulders and a beanie.. good gosh, a beanie never looked as hot as it did on her head. She came in, hands shoved in her pockets and made eye contact with Laura immediately. She gave a half smile and a nod then turned and made a beeline for the counter where Laf was.

Carmilla pulled her hands from her pockets and leaned on the counter, “She’s watching me, right?” she gave Laf a smug grin.

Laf shook their head and glanced over at Laura as they got a coffee ready for her. “She’s been here a while, you know. And no actually, she’s not looking at you.”

“What?!” Carmilla turned quick to look at Laura who was in fact, watching her. Slightly embarrassed she forced a small smile before turning back to glare at Laf, “Jerk.”

Laf chuckled and handed her a coffee, “Look, Laura is different than what you’re used to.” They gave her a serious look, “Don’t screw with her. If you like her, fine. But if you don’t, don't play games with her.”

Laf had a soft spot for Laura. They had met last year randomly. Laura was interviewing one of the science professors for some article for the school newspaper and when she had finished, was walking down the hall by the lab and happened to walk past just as Laf combined two chemicals that shouldn't ever be combined and created an explosion. Laura ran into the lab to find Laf standing in the middle of the room stunned, hair singed and lab coat actually on fire. She grabbed the fire extinguisher and put out the fire, covering herself and Laf in foam from the extinguisher in the process. They laughed it off and then bonded over their love of Sci-fi and had been friends ever since. Then a few months ago it was Laura who introduced them to Perry. That act alone earned her extra points in Laf’s book.

Carmilla’s smug expression left her face immediately and she looked down at her coffee, studying it rather intently for a moment before glancing over her shoulder at Laura again. Laura was starting to pull out her notes and set them on the table, Carmilla turned back around, her eyes down on her coffee again and a small smile forming.

“Holy shit.” Laf’s eyes widened, “You _do_ like her, don't you?.”

Carmilla looked up quickly, dropping her smile, desperate to change the subject. She wasn't sure what she felt for Laura, and she didn't want to deal with shit about it before she knew what exactly it was. “How was your date with little red?” she asked, taking a sip of the coffee avoiding eye contact, hoping Laf would accept the change of subject. Apparently it was the right question to ask to make Laf forget about the previous conversation because they immediately smiled wide and started relaying the night.

“It was perfect." They smiled goofily, "You were right, I just had to be myself. We didn't even do anything we just hung out here and talked all night…” They kept talking excitedly but Carmilla was barely listening, she quickly glanced over her shoulder again at the blonde who was waiting patiently at the table with a smile on her face. Carmilla turned back to pretend to listen to Lafontaine and sighed. She _did_ like her.

——

“Sorry I’m late, cupcake.” Carmilla sat down and dropped her bag by her feet, pulled her beanie off and ran a hand through her hair.

“Oh its no problem. I was early.” Laura smiled eagerly back at her. “So where do we start? I have all my notes and textbooks and put tabs on the things Professor Fields said would be important and even made copies of the last couple quizzes so you could see what kind of questions are usually on them and—” She looked up and saw Carmilla lazily drinking her coffee, seeming like she was ignoring her. She pouted slightly and slouched a little in her chair, not sure if she should go on.

Carmilla set the empty cup on the table and stood up casually, “Come with me.” Then she started walking towards the library, “leave your stuff there. We wont need it.” She disappeared into the library, leaving Laura sitting at the table completely confused.

Laura looked at the table covered with papers she had gotten ready for today and then back towards the library. Carmilla was gone. Laura jumped up and made her way quickly to the library door, “Carmilla?” she stood in the entrance and looked around but didn't see her anywhere.

“You’re getting warmer, sundance.”

Laura heard Carmilla's voice. She knew it was hers because it was low and smooth, and somehow relaxing. She took a few steps into the library and looked around again, her eyes narrowing, trying to find the girl that was supposed to be helping her study.

“colder”

Her voice was quieter even though she should have been getting closer just by walking in the door, so Carmilla must be moving away from her. Laura took that as her sign to start looking harder. She picked an isle and made her way quickly through it. She still didn't see or hear Carmilla so she took a turn to her left and went down another isle. She was nearing the end when she heard her voice again, a little louder.

“getting warmer again. you learn quick.”

Laura could almost hear the smirk that must be on Carmilla's face. _What was the point of this? Weren't they supposed to be studying?_ Laura picked up her pace, she wasn't sure if she was annoyed at the fact that they weren't studying, or actually having fun playing whatever game this was with Carmilla. She made her way through two more isles when she heard Carmilla's voice coming from the next isle over.

“You’re ridiculously hot right now.”

Laura let out a nervous laugh, “is that part of the game or are you flirting with me?” She quickly made her way over to the isle where the voice had come from but Carmilla was already gone.

“Does it have to be one or the other?” Carmilla asked, once again, just one isle over from where Laura was.

Laura stopped walking and looked around. They were definitely alone in this area of the library and she really wanted to know what the point of this was. She crossed her arms over her chest and stood her ground, “Will you tell me what we are doing?” Suddenly a few books on the shelf that separated the two girls moved to create a window like space, Carmilla looked through it at Laura. Laura raised her eyebrows, still waiting for an answer, “well?”

Carmilla studied Laura for a second, “Alright fine, what are we learning in Professor Fields class?” She already knew the answer. The papers that were scattered across her floor that morning were old worksheets and homework from Prof. Fields class. She had taken his class before, thats how she knew he was a shitty teacher. He was one of the oldest teachers on campus and extremely lazy so she made a safe bet that he hadn't changed his class plans since she had taken his class. She dug up the old syllabus and homework and spent a good amount of time going over it the night before so she could be sure she could actually help Laura.

Laura rolled her eyes and dropped her arms to her sides, “If we had stayed in the coffee shop i could have shown you. Thats what all my notes and stuff are for.” she was gesturing quickly with her hands and scrunching up her face like she did when she was frustrated.

Carmilla chuckled and disappeared form the space between the books, “That scrunched up face you make when you’re angry is hilarious, buttercup” She came around the corner and stopped at the end of the isle Laura was standing in. She crossed her ams and leaned against the shelf. “Tell me, how did you study for this quiz you so brilliantly failed?”

Laura’s face when from frustrated to embarrassed “well, Perry was helping me” she said quietly.

“How?” Carmilla asked flatly.

Laura’s eyebrows came together, she was starting to get a little defensive at Carmilla’s tone, “We went over my notes and stuff in the textbook and—“

Carmilla cut her off, “And how did that work out for you?” She stood upright, taking her shoulder off the shelf and uncrossing her arms. She took a couple slow steps towards Laura, dragging her fingers along the books and watching her hand as she walked.

“Not well” Laura admitted, the anger leaving her body, her shoulders dropping and her lip pouting slightly.

Carmilla kept taking slow steps towards her, her fingers brushing along the books, but she brought her gaze up to look at Laura as she got closer. “Exactly.” She stopped walking when she was standing right in front of Laura, not caring about invading her personal space.

Laura felt Carmilla step in closer and immediately felt the same surge of energy she had felt the day before when she had touched her hand. Only this time, she wasn't touching her. Carmilla was just standing in front of her, looking at her intently with her dark eyes.  They were intoxicating.

“I think its time for a different approach.” Carmilla spoke quietly, even though no one else was around them, its like she didn't want anyone else to hear them for fear they would be interrupted. “Don’t you think?”

Laura kept her eyes locked on Carmilla’s and nodded, “sure.” She wasn't sure why but her mouth was dry and there was a lump in her throat she was having trouble swallowing down.

Carmilla's stare dropped down to focus on Laura’s lips, then back up to her eyes. She gave her a crooked smile, “Good.” Then she turned and walked away, turned the corner and disappeared into another isle.

Laura took a big breathe and let it out slowly, trying to relax. She hadn't noticed but her whole body was tense.

“You’re getting colder again” Carmilla called from somewhere in the library.

Laura smiled and started checking down the isles, “World History, since 1500”

“warmer… you're getting better at this game.” She smiled to herself and listened for Laura’s footsteps to know where to go to stay ahead of her. “What are we talking about first?”

Laura turned down an isle quickly, following Carmilla’s voice, “Empires. Russian.. Asian..” She jumped around a corner, sure she was going to catch the other girl, but the isle was empty. She turned around to look behind her. She could have sworn she was right here. “we talked about European empires in the americas up until 1750.” She was walking again, slower this time, listening for Carmilla's movement.

This went on for a while. Carmilla would ask a question and if Laura got it right, she would let her get closer to finding her. Getting it wrong meant she would move further away from her. They had made their way through most of the library, passing through isles, brushing along the books. Carmilla would watch Laura through spaces in-between books and isles, never wanting to move too far away from her. She had gone through most of her questions, giving Laura the correct answers when she got them wrong, then waiting a while before asking the same question again, giving her a chance to get it right.

“You’re practically on fire.” Carmilla whispered through the row of books. “Why did the British end up with the unpromising land when they settled in North America?” Carmilla spoke softly, watching Laura walk down the isle next to her through the small spaces between books. She reached the end of the isle and stopped walking, as did Laura.

Laura paused and thought for a second. She was right there, she knew if she got this one right she would have her. “They were late to the game. Its all that was left.” Laura answered quietly. She stood there, waiting to find out if she had gotten the answer right or not. She was so close to finally catching Carmilla, and even though all they had been talking about was history and empires, trading, slavery and colonies, somehow she felt like it was bigger than that. They both stood at the end of the isle, back in the small secluded corner where they started. They had been walking around for a while and Laura couldn't believe how much she actually understood and could remember from her history class now. She also couldn't believe how excited she was to finally get to look at Carmilla again after only being able to hear her voice all day.

Carmilla turned the corner and stood directly in front of Laura, practically inches from her. Laura took in a sharp breath at suddenly being that close to Carmilla after always being separated by books the entire day.

“Am I right?” she whispered, eyes locked on Carmilla. She had been so caught up in the game and answering questions, she hadn't really considered what would happen when she actually caught her.

Carmilla returned her gaze and lifted an eyebrow, “Burning. On fire. Blazing. Hot lava even.” Her voice was low and seductive as she gave her a crooked smile.

Laura smiled wide and squealed excitedly, “Eeee! oh my gosh!” She stepped forward closing the gap between them and threw her arms around Carmilla’s neck pulling her into a hug. Carmilla stiffened at the sudden contact. She hadn't been expecting it and wasn't sure what to do, which was odd for her.  She usually didn't have a problem with girls throwing themselves at her, but once again, Laura was different and she suddenly didn't want to mess it up.

Laura felt Carmilla’s hesitation and let go and stepped back quickly looking slightly embarrassed. “Sorry, I just got excited.” She took another small step back and played with her fingers nervously, “That’s just the first time I actually understood anything from that class.”

Carmilla was mentally kicking herself for the way she had reacted to Laura's hug but tried to play it cool. She chuckled and brought a hand up to rub the back of her neck, “No problem, cutie. If thats what happens when you understand history I cant wait to cover the next chapter with you.”

They stood there in silence the obvious tension building between them. They had covered the topic for the day as well as they could, there was nothing left to do, but neither girl made a move to leave. The lingering silence and heavy tension made Laura laugh nervously. She dropped her eyes to the ground.

Carmilla caught herself smiling, watching Laura get flustered. She cleared her throat and tried to make her face as neutral as possible, “Monday then?”

Laura looked back up at her and gave her a thankful smile, “Monday sounds great. I can come by around 4. Will that work with your work schedule?”

Carmilla nodded, “Sounds good.”

They lingered a few seconds before turning around and walking down the isle together, their shoulders brushing in the small space.  Laura couldn't help but smile at the surge of energy she was feeling once again. They walked back into the coffee shop and Carmilla picked up her things still sitting next to the table where she had left them. She gave Laura a small smile and a nod before turning and walking out the door. She smiled the whole walk back to her apartment. _Who knew Russian and European Empires could be so fun?_

Laura dropped down into the chair at the table with a big grin on her face. She looked at the papers scattered across the table and started gathering them into a pile.

“Hey, Hollis!” Danny walked across the room and stood looking down at the smaller girl, “feeling better today?” she asked with a smile.

Laura looked up at her with the same big grin, “Much better, actually.” She was so glad she was finally understanding things for her class but she also felt giddy, her stomach fluttering thinking about Carmilla.

“That’s awesome.” Danny pulled out a chair and sat down across from Laura, “A bunch of us are headed to a party tonight, you should come.” She looked slightly nervous but Laura was too distracted to notice.

Laura kept gathering her things and putting them back in her bag. Feeling confident with her class now, she figured it wouldn't be a bad idea to get out for a night, “Sure!” She smiled back up at Danny.

Danny stood, her smile a little wider, “Great! Its a date then. I’ll pick you up at 8!” Then she turned and left.

“Wait. What?” Laura’s face immediately shifting to one of confusion and shock. “A date?” she was talking to no one in particular. Danny was already gone and she was left sitting at her table not really sure what had just happened. One second she was giddy thinking about Carmilla and the next she had a date with Danny. She should be happy about this, she had a huge crush on Danny. _Didn't she?_   She might not be confused about history anymore but now she was completely confused with the present. She slouched down into the chair a little and let out a sigh, “oh boy.”


	6. Hangovers and the French Revolution

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Laura has her date with Danny  
> we meet betty :)  
> Another study session with Carmilla

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to anyone still reading haha. I was trying to decide where I was talking it for a bit but I think I have a direction now so things should start getting better...  
> any comments/criticism is welcome :)

“Oh my gosh” Laura groaned as she tried to sit up in bed, immediately regretting it as her head started to pound harder and feel like it weighed more than her entire body. "I think I'm dying" She fell back into her pillow and rolled to her side, squinting against the light coming in from the cracks in the blinds. She looked to the clock next to her bed and saw that it was already 1pm. She rolled onto her back and shut her eyes tight, “what happened last night?”

Suddenly she heard clattering coming from her kitchen and her eyes flew open wide.

“I had a date with Danny!”  She turned her head to look at her bedroom door. Its like she honestly thought if she stared hard enough she would suddenly have Xray vision and be able to see who was in her apartment with her.

Her door swung open quickly and in danced Betty, Laura’s roommate. She immediately let out a sigh of relief. Her memory was a little foggy from the night before and she was incredibly glad it was Betty bursting into the room and not the morning after version of Danny.

“Hey sleepy head!” Betty practically yelled as she pulled open the blinds abruptly.

“Inside voice, please.” Laura grumbled as she pulled her covers up over her head to shield herself from the light.

“Aww, hangover got you down?” Betty laughed and grabbed hold of Laura’s blankets and tugged on them, uncovering her head again. “You told me to make sure you were up by noon, so get up.”

Laura scrunched up her face and looked up at the blonde bouncing on the end of her bed, “Betty, its past noon. Its 1:00.”

Betty smiled guiltily, “All the more reason to get up then” She stood up and walked over to Laura’s closet.

Betty and Laura had been roommates since freshman year. They were in the dorms together but after some interesting encounters they were forced to endure that year, they opted for an apartment off campus starting their sophomore year. They were an odd pair. Betty was quite the partier and Laura more so the book worm. But they seemed to even each other out. Laura would guilt Betty into actually studying and in return Betty would drag Laura to parties occasionally.

“Can I borrow this?” Betty held up a shirt she had pulled from Laura’s closet.

“Sure. Borrow whatever you want.” Laura slowly sat herself up, her eyes still trying to adjust to the light. She placed her hands behind her and leaned back on her arms, forcing herself to stay upright. “Um, do you know what happened last night?” She reached up a hand to scratch her head and ended up pulling out a piece of pepperoni from her hair.

Betty let out a laugh that made Laura's head feel like it was being slammed against a cement wall. She walked back over to the bed and sat down on the edge of it, “Yeah, you had a few too many drinks last night.”

Laura lifted her hands to cover her face, “oh my gosh, what did I do?” she dropped her hands, her face looking concerned, “I was on a date with Danny, did I completely embarrass myself?”

“Oh no. Danny had to leave the party a little early so I came to get you and we stayed to hang out with the Zetas.” Betty stood up and walked back over the closet, putting the shirt back on the rack and going through the rest of the clothes.

Suddenly Laura remembered what had happened the night before--

"Hey Laura." Danny smiled down at her as soon as she opened the door, "You look great. Ready to go?"

"Sure, yeah, of course." Laura answered nervously as she stepped out of her apartment and shut the door. "Thanks, by the way. You look great too." She gave Danny a nervous smile.  

 _Why was she so nervous?_ Yeah she was on a date with Danny Lawrence- the same Danny Lawrence she had had a crush on the entire semester. But it wasn't the same nervousness she felt two weeks ago- the flutter in her stomach, light headed and lost for words nervousness.  It was almost more of a guilty feeling, like she really cared for Danny and didn't want to hurt her. It was seriously confusing. Because Danny was still sweet and funny and beautiful.

"I thought we could grab some food before we head over to the zeta house for the party. You can never be too sure about the food they serve in that house." Danny laughed and led Laura down the sidewalk.

"That actually sounds great, I'm starving!" Laura decided to try and shake off the feeling she couldn't quite explain and just try to have a good time. She was probably being silly and overthinking the entire thing anyway. 

They ended up walking to a small diner just off campus and sitting near the back in a booth.  There's weren't many people there so it was pretty quiet and they had no trouble keeping conversation. It was easy talking to Danny. They had a lot in common and Danny seemed genuinely interested in everything Laura talked about. She was also incredibly intelligent and had her own opinions on things, which was a really attractive quality to Laura.  Being into journalism she loved when she could have a conversation with someone and actually learn something or have her eyes opened to a different point of view. Get more of the story so to speak.  

After they finished eating they headed over to the Zeta house for the party. Kirsch greeted them at the door with his goofy big grin and handed them both cups filled with something that tasted awful then went back to his girlfriend S.J. Laura had never been a heavy drinker so after that first cup she pretty much stuck to water.  Her and Danny hung out, talked to a lot of people, danced.. the normal party stuff.  She remembers sitting on a couch and Danny putting her hand on her knee.  Actually, thinking about it now, she remembers Danny touching her a lot throughout the night.  Small little touches, on her arm or shoulder or leg. And she was always standing or sitting really close.  _But that was probably because the music and party was loud and it was hard to hear each other._

But Betty was right, Laura remembered that Danny cut out just after midnight. She felt bad but Laura had reassured her that Betty wouldn't mind coming to get her. She remembers Danny hugging her, it was a little tighter and lasted a little longer than her usual ones but she figured thats probably normal for a date. _A Date._ They were on an actual date. She had to keep reminding herself of that for some reason.

After that is when things got a little more hazy. She remembers being pulled into a game of beer pong and her one drink idea flew out the window. She remembers doing shots with some of the football team and the entire party chanting something that sounded like ‘Pizza or Death!’ _That could explain the pepperoni in her hair._ After that her memory was blank. Betty must have gotten her home and put her to bed.

“Who’s Carmilla?” Betty asked casually as she pulled another shirt from the closet and held it up against herself and looked in the mirror.

“What?” Laura turned her head much to fast to look at Betty. She let out a slow breath and tried to concentrate on not throwing up.

“Carmilla.” Betty put the shirt back in the closet and pulled a different one out, examining it like she did the last one, “After you had a few drinks in you, you kept mentioning someone named Carmilla. You wouldn't shut up about her actually.”

“Seriously? What- what did I say?” She suddenly forgot how close she was to throwing up and was really interested in her drunk ramblings about her new found study buddy.

“I don’t remember everything. Something about really nice hair and how her face made her a greek goddess.” Betty pulled her shirt off over her head and tossed it towards the door and pulled one of Laura’s shirts on. “You kept saying that you really wanted to be a cupcake. Or that you wanted a cupcake? I don't know. You talk a lot when you’re sober and when you're drunk its like you talk twice as much and twice as fast.” Betty laughed and straightened out her shirt, smiling happily at herself in the mirror. “Well you’re up, so my job is done. Take a tylenol and drink lots of water.” She blew Laura a kiss and smiled as she walked out of Laura’s room, grabbing her shirt off the floor as she went.

Laura laid back down on the bed and rubbed her eyes with the palms of her hands.  
“Cupcake” she chuckled to herself as she laid there a minute longer. She groaned as she rolled out of bed and made her way to the bathroom. _I’m never drinking again._

——

“I know you’re in there! I can hear the tv!” Lafontaine called through Carmilla's front door.

Carmilla swung the door open wide, an unhappy look on her face, “What?” She crossed her arms in front of her and lifted an eyebrow at Laf.

Looking the girl over, they chuckled, “Do you ever wear pants?” Laf shook their head as they walked by Carmilla, letting themselves in and leaving her standing in the doorway wearing a t-shirt and pair of underwear.

Carmilla shut the door and turned around to follow Laf back into her apartment, “Only when I have to.” She passed Laf who was setting down a stack of books on her counter and walked into her room. She came out a minute later with a pair of sweatpants on. “And why am I seeing you this lovely Sunday afternoon?” it came out sarcastic as she sat down on one of the stools next to the island counter that was between her kitchen and living room and leaned her elbows on the counter top.

“I need to study.” Laf sighed and looked at Carmilla with an overwhelmed expression.

“That doesn't explain why you are here. In my house. Making me wear pants.” She let her head drop down onto her hands.

They pulled out a stool and sat down on it, opening one of their books, “If I try to study at home I’ll get distracted. So I came here because you probably owe me for something and I need a quiet place. And I figured you probably had homework to grade anyway, so we could work together?”

It was a solid excuse. And Laf was right, she should be grading homework instead of watching tv. She sighed and dropped her shoulders, “fine.” She stood up and walked over to the couch and grabbed the remote to turn off the tv. “But no experiments. I don't want you blowing up my apartment.” She picked up her bag from behind the couch and pulled out the stack of papers to grade and sat back down at the island with Laf.

“Psh… Please.” Laf smiled and looked down at their book, “that was one time.”

——

Carmilla dropped her red pen on the stack of papers in front of her and stood up and headed over to the fridge. She opened the door and leaned over, looking lazily into the fridge before standing up and letting the door shut. “I have no food.” She turned around and walked back to the counter, “Lets go get some.” she leaned on the counter and raised her eyebrows at Laf.

Laf kept their eyes glued to the book in front of them, “I already ate.”

Carmilla stood up and put her hands on her hips, “You’ve been here for the last 5 hours and we haven’t eaten once. Taking one break isn't going to kill you.”

“No but it might kill my grades.” They marked their spot and shut the book, looking up at Carmilla and letting out a sigh, “I’m so swamped. With school and managing the coffee shop and…” They trailed off.

“And, all the time you spend texting Perry” Carmilla gave them a knowing look

“yeah ok, so I get distracted and lose time talking to her, but I cant help it.” They smiled up at Carmilla. “But fine, let’s go get food.” They stood and walked towards the door, grabbing their jacket.

They ended up at the same diner Danny and Laura had been to the night before. It was busier today with students grabbing greasy food to doctor hangovers and prepare for another night of drinking. They grabbed a booth and opened up their menus to check their options. It was more out of habit that anything else. They both had been to the diner so many times they probably could tell you everything on the menu without even looking.

A familiar face greeted them, or more so greeted Carmilla, “Hey there, haven’t seen you in a while.” She leaned on the back of the seat Carmilla was in, getting in close to the brunette.

Carmilla kept her eyes on the menu, “Hi Natalie. I think I’m going to go with a burger and extra fries today.” She shut the menu and set it on the table and looked across to Laf.

Laf watched Natalie write down Carmilla’s order, a disappointed look on her face, “I’ll have the um, just the club sandwich.” They shut their menu and placed it on top of Carmilla’s.

“If thats all, I’ll be back with some water and your food in a bit.” Natalie gave Carmilla one more hopeful look but when it went ignored, she turned and walked back to the kitchen.

“Harsh.” Laf shook their head at Carmilla.

She just shrugged her shoulders casually.

“Not in the flirting mood? Usually you’ve gotten us a free piece of pie by now. You know Natalie is totally into you, she practically drools all over my food when you just look at her. Its gross.” They made a face and looked expectantly at Carmilla.

Carmilla examined her nails lazily, “I don’t know what you want me to do.” She glanced over to the counter where Natalie was, “She’s not my type. So theres really no point in flirting with her.” She looked back at Laf with a bored expression.

“What are you talking about?!” They leaned forward over the table, “She’s exactly your type! Look at her!” They gestured with their hand in Natalie’s direction, sending Carmilla’s eyes back to look at her again.

Carmilla shrugged again and didn't say anything.

“Please tell me the sudden lack of flirting with girls is because of Laura.” They chuckled, realization covering their face.

Carmilla glared across the table and was about to say something but Natalie was suddenly standing there, placing water on their table. And a piece of pie.

“We had an extra and I thought you could snack on it while you waited for you food.” She smiled at Carmilla, completely ignoring Lafontaine.

Carmilla stopped glaring at Laf and quickly smiled sweetly up at Natalie, “Thanks, beautiful” she reached out and let her hand gently slide down Natalie’s arm before taking her pointer finger and swiping it through the whip cream on top of the pie. She brought her finger to her mouth and licked off the whip cream, raising an eyebrow suggestively and keeping her eyes locked on Natalie.

Natalie watched her closely and let out a giggle before turning around and walking away.

“Happy?” Carmilla’s face dropped back into a neutral expression as she looked across at Laf.

Laf’s mouth was dropped wide open in awe from watching the exchange, “I don’t know how you do that.” They were completely serious.

Carmilla rolled her eyes, “Just eat your pie.” She pushed the plate across the table, Laf immediately grinned wide and dug into the pie in front of them.

Its a good thing Lafontaine was completely focused on the pie because Carmilla was suddenly lost in thought. It had always been easy for her to flirt with girls, most of the time it was even fun. But Laf was right, she hadn't been doing it much lately. Even flirting with Natalie just now, she just didn't care. She didn't care if Natalie paid attention to her, or if any other girl paid attention to her, to be honest. The only girl she wanted to grab the attention of, was Laura.

Carmilla sighed and crossed her arms on the table, slouching onto them. She glanced around the diner and suddenly saw a mess of familiar red curls. “I’ll be back” She stood up quick and made her way over to the girl who had just walked through the door.

“Hey, Perry. How are you?” She leaned on the counter next to where Perry had just sat down.

“Oh, hello Carmilla. I’m well, thank you for asking.” she smiled politely back at her.

Carmilla got the feeling Perry didn't exactly like her. honestly she wouldn't usually care, except she knew Laf really liked her, and she was also Laura’s friend. “Look, I was about to eat with Lafontaine” She nodded back in the direction of the booth where she came from, “But something came up and I have to run. Any chance you could keep them company for me?”

Perry’s face lit up after seeing Lafontaine and she most definitely seemed warmer towards Carmilla, “That would be lovely, actually.” She smiled wide and stood up off the stool at the bar where she was sitting.

“Perfect.” Carmilla gave her a small smile, “Tell Laf I’ll catch them later?”

Perry nodded, her curls bouncing excitedly as she walked around Carmilla towards the booth Lafontaine was sitting in.

Before she left, Carmilla got her food in a to-go box and paid the bill for herself, Laf and Perry. She took her time walking home, it was warmer than it had been the last few days and the sun was actually still out.

 _ **Carmilla (5:27pm):**_ _I’ll bring your books by the shop in the morning_

 _ **Laf (6:12pm):**_ _I love you more than Natalie does_

——

“So, how'd last night go?” Carmilla asked as soon as Laf was in ear shot. It was raining again and she was trying to hold an umbrella as well as the stack of books Laf had left at her house the night before.

They pulled their keys from their pocket and unlocked the door to the Coffee Shop, “Last night was incredible.” They followed Carmilla into the shop and made their way behind the counter. “Natalie was sad you left though” They chuckled and started making some coffee.

Carmilla scoffed at their comment and dropped the pile of books on the counter, “Ha. I bet.” She shook her head. _Girls_.  "Hey, do me a favor? I'm studying with Laura later and need some cookies.  Think you could have the chick that makes all your baked stuff make me a bunch?”

LaF looked at her curiously, "Probably. Do I want to know what you will be doing with these cookies?"

Carmilla rolled her eyes and grabbed the coffee LaF had set on the counter. "Just have them ready by 4. A lot of them." She waved over her shoulder and walked back outside into the rain.   She wasn't too far away from the coffee shop before Perry walked past her, a big grin on her face.  She actually waved at Carmilla as she passed, which Carmilla took as a good sign. As much as she disliked the general population, Perry didn't seem too bad. And if she made LaF happy, then she would learn to deal with having more than one weird ginger in her life. 

\-- --

Later that afternoon Laura was running a little late. Her professor had gone over their usual class time during their lecture, so she was walking fairly quickly to the coffee shop.  She had practically been counting down the minutes until 4:00. She didn't know if they would be playing the hide and seek game again but she didn't really care. She was just excited thinking about getting to see Carmilla. She was just about there when she heard someone calling her name. She turned around to see Danny jogging towards her.  Once again she was caught with conflicting emotions. She did have a good time with Danny Saturday night but she also couldn't get Carmilla out of her head. 

"Hey Danny!" She greeted her with a smile, slowing her pace a little until she caught up. 

"Hey, sorry again about cutting out early on Saturday night." Danny took the umbrella from Laura's hand and held it up above them both. "Did you end up staying much longer?"

Laura nodded, “yeah, we stayed for a bit after you left" she shuddered at the memory of how awful of a hangover she had yesterday, "it wasn't super exciting though" _not that she could remember most of it._  

Danny rushed ahead of her and opened the door to the coffee shop and held it open. Laura thanked her as she walked in and quickly looked around to see if she could see Carmilla. She suddenly felt nervous about walking in with Danny. She just didn't want anyone to get the wrong idea.  The dark haired girl was no where to be seen though so she just walked over to an empty table and made herself comfortable, Danny following close behind. 

“So the halloween party is this weekend.”

“Thats right! Are you and Kirsch ready to start setting up?” Laura asked as she pulled out her history book from her backpack. _Maybe if she made it obvious she was there to study Danny would leave on her own before Carmilla showed up._

“Oh, yeah. Just about. I actually am supposed to meet up with him in a bit to figure out the last few details.”

“That’s great!” She smiled and nodded quickly at the taller girl as she clumsily opened her book to a random page.

“You ok hollis? You’re acting kind of—”

That was the moment Laura saw Carmilla. She was standing behind the counter grabbing something from Lafontaine and suddenly Laura was extremely nervous. “Of course I’m ok!” it came out a little too enthusiastic and actually made Danny jump a little in her seat. She tried to calm her voice a little, “I mean, I just have a lot of studying to do. You know, school and all.” she tapped her hand on her book a few times and gave Danny an awkward smile.

Danny laughed and reached across the table and took hold of Laura’s hand and gave it a squeeze, “If you say so. Well i’ll leave you to it I guess.” she stood up and pushed the chair in under the table, “See you later?”

Laura nodded quickly and Danny turned and left just as Carmilla walked up to the table. She was balancing two cups of hot chocolate and a plate of cookies in her hands, quite gracefully actually.

Carmilla had seen most of what happened with Danny and Laura while she was getting the cookies from Laf. She couldn't hear everything, but she definitely didn't miss Danny holding Laura’s hand or the fact that she was going to ‘see her later’. She stopped at the table and looked back at Danny walking out the door then back at Laura. “Didn’t mean to interrupt you and your girlfriend.” she sounded irritated.

“Who? Danny?” Laura shook her head quickly, a nervous laugh erupting from her, “no, she's not my— we’re not— I mean she isnt-“

“Don’t hurt yourself cupcake.” Carmilla set down the hot chocolate and cookies and sat down across from Laura.

Laura immediately smiled and reached forward to grab a cookie. As she did Carmilla slid the plate further away from her, just out of her reach. “tsk, tsk.” she shook her head at the blonde.

“You aren't going to share?” Laura pouted at her.

Carmilla did her best not to smile, it was difficult though, that pout was one of the most adorable faces Laura made. Almost as adorable as the scrunched up one she made when she was frustrated.

“It’ll ruin todays game.” Carmilla said smoothly, picking up one of the cookies and taking a bite for herself.

Laura’s pout grew, “we aren't going into the library today?”

“Nope. We are going to stay right here.” she took another bite and smiled teasingly. “What’s today’s topic?”

Laura watched Carmilla’s mouth as she took another bite, “revolutions” she said slowly.

“Perfect.” Carmilla smiled, “The american revolution began in 1775, right? Do you know when did it ended?” She popped the remainder of her cookie into her mouth, completely aware of where Laura’s eyes were locked.

“17… 83?” Laura was guessing.

“You sure?” Carmilla asked, raising an eyebrow at her.

“yes?”

Carmilla couldn't help the laugh that came out, “You don't sound sure.”

Laura smiled. She wasn't sure she had heard Carmilla laugh before. _It was beautiful_.  
“I’m sure. 1783.” She sat up straight and nodded her head once with conviction.

Carmilla gave her a small smile and slid the plate across the table to her.

“Really?!” Laura’s eyes were wide and her face lit up completely. Carmilla wasn't sure if it was because she was happy she got the question right or if it was because she got to have a cookie. Either way, she loved seeing her smile.

Once again the game continued for a while, Carmilla asking questions and when answered right, Laura got a cookie. When she answered wrong, Carmilla would eat one. With the exception of a good chunk of time that Carmilla spent ranting about the French Revolution. There was actually a moment where Carmilla was _speaking french_ while she ranted.

Laura started to notice how passionate Carmilla was about some of these topics, and history in general. It was interesting. She also noticed that Carmilla never looked at any of her notes or in the books when she asked the questions or gave her the answers. Apparently she was brilliant when it came to history. It made Laura wonder what else she was good at.

“Napoleon was actually Emperor of the French from 1804 until 1814, and again in 1815.” Carmilla grabbed another cookie and took a bite. “So tell me again, Napoleon was…” She gestured with her hand for Laura to finish her thought.

“Emperor of France from 1804 to 1814.” She repeated back confidently. Either she was getting better at this history stuff or Carmilla was really good at explaining things so they made sense and were easy to remember.

Carmilla was about to ask another question when Laura’s phone started beeping in her backpack. Laura grabbed her bag and reached through the pockets, giving carmilla an apologetic smile. She finally found it and flipped it open “oh crap” she brought her palm up to her forehead, “I completely forgot I have a group review I have to go to.”

Carmilla shifted in her seat, “Right now?” She tried to sound casual but it came out sounding a little disappointed.

“Yeah” Laura made a disappointed face of her own and looked across the table to Carmilla.

Carmilla cleared her throat and looked down at the table, “We are almost out of cookies anyway. And I think you know more from this chapter than you give yourself credit for so we can probably call it a night anyway.”

“Oh. ok.” Laura was trying to read Carmilla’s expression but like always, found it impossible.

Carmilla looked up and made eye contact with Laura, “I could walk you?” _Could you be more lame?_

Laura’s eyes lit up with her smile, “I would love that, actually.” She started to pack her things into her bag quickly, “wait-“ she looked up at Carmilla again, “Are you going to get in trouble? I mean you’ve been sitting here with me all day already, wont your boss be mad if you just leave?”

_My boss? What is she talking about?_

“Umm..” Then it donned on her. _She thinks I work here_. Suddenly all the comments about her work schedule and getting in trouble for spending so much time with her and the day in the library when she asked for helping finding a book made sense. Carmilla let out a chuckle, instead of explaining things she decided just to let it go, “Don’t worry about it, cutie.” Then she stood and held her arm out towards the door, “After you.”

Laura smiled up at her before standing and putting her backpack on. She gripped the straps and walked towards the door. Carmilla followed her out, putting on her jacket and then opening her umbrella once they were out the door.

“Which way?” She stepped in close to Laura so her umbrella could cover them both. It was raining pretty hard so for the umbrella to actually work they had to stand close and hold the umbrella pretty low over their heads.

Laura looped her arm through Carmilla’s and gave it a gently pull, “This way” She smiled and started pulling Carmilla in the direction they needed to go.

Carmilla felt the familiar tug in her stomach and looked down at their interlocked arms and took a deep breath trying to calm her heart beat. She liked this. _She liked Laura._

They walked in comfortable silence for a minute when Carmilla realized they had never really talked about anything besides homework and her class. "Sooo.." She dragged it out, giving herself time to figure out what she was going to say next. Nothing came to mind. 

Laura giggled and held a little tighter to Carmilla’s arm, "so?" She looked over and smiled at Carmilla's blank expression.

Carmilla shook her head, mostly at herself. _Why was she such an idiot around this girl? Pull it together Karnstein._ “Sooo,” she made sure to enunciate it a little extra, “Halloween is this weekend. Any plans?”

“Well there’s the Zeta and Summer Society halloween party that happens every year.” Laura easily filled the silence, talking a lot was one of her best and worst qualities. Best, in this case, “I’m actually helping them set up this week. You should totally come!” She turned and looked excitedly at Carmilla who had been watching their feet and the water droplets falling to the ground.

Carmilla raised an eyebrow skeptically, “mmm, should I?” She was grateful Laura was good at small talk, and talking in general. It had never been her strong suit. Even when she wanted to talk to people, which was rare, it was always hard for her. So she loved the fact that Laura did enough talking for the both of them.

“Of course! I think Laf and Perry are going to be there too so you will even know some people. And I bet you’ll know more than just them, practically the entire school shows up for this party.” Laura looked back at Carmilla again, “It’ll be fun” that part came out quieter and more shy than the rest had.

The corner of Carmilla’s lips twisted up into the hint of a smile, “We’ll see.”

They walked a little further across campus, Laura filling the silence easily and Carmilla responding with “hmm” or “I see” or something similarly vague and short. Occasionally she would ask Laura a question to steer the conversation in a new direction, but mostly she just listened.

When they finally reached their destination Laura unhooked her arm from Carmilla’s and turned to face her. Still huddled under the umbrella they were only inches apart. Carmilla had never loved the rain so much in her life.

“This is me.” Laura pointed over her shoulder to the building behind her and rocked on the balls of her feet back to her heels. “I guess I’ll see you tomorrow? Same time?”

“mmhmm” Carmilla hummed, watching the girl inches away from her, while being very aware of her heart beating faster than usual.

Laura smiled wide and started to lean in for a hug but hesitated, remembering how it went the last time. As she was starting to lean back away, deciding against it, Carmilla reached forward with her free hand and took hold of one of Laura’s. She pulled on it gently, bring Laura towards her again. As soon as Laura started to move closer she let go of her hand and took hold of her waist and pulled her in, wrapping her arm around Laura’s back. This time it was Laura who was caught off guard and she clumsily wrapped her arms around Carmilla’s shoulders in a loose hug. When she finally realized what was happening, she let her arms come up around Carmilla’s neck and hugged her a little tighter, feeling the surge of energy she did every time they touched.

Carmilla sighed at the feeling of holding Laura close. It just felt like they fit, and she didn't want to let go.

Laura smiled as she pulled back and dropped her arms to her sides, “Thanks again, for helping me study. I might actually pass this class and graduate thanks to you.” She grabbed onto the straps of her backpack and gave them a little tug.

“No problem.” Carmilla said quietly and smiled, her body still reeling form being so close to her. She watched her for a second, realizing she wasn't going to say anything else, she turned around to head back to the coffee shop. She had taken just a few steps when she heard Laura call after her again, she turned around and saw Laura had made her way up the steps of the building and was standing in the doorway.

“Thanks for walking me too, Carm.” She gave her a shy smile and disappeared into the building.

Carmilla caught herself smiling at the nickname Laura had given her and shook her head. “What is this girl doing to you?” she whispered to herself as she walked back through the campus in the rain.


	7. Starlit Moments

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> lots of goodness... oh my gosh.
> 
> more studying, gross brownies, star gazing and close calls.

Carmilla leaned back in her chair, folded her arms over her chest and looked around the table.

Laura was sitting across from her, her attention shifting between Danny and Kirsch arguing about something that had to do with their ridiculous party and Perry, trying to talk to her about her night out spent with Lafontaine.

She knew Laura was special, people were just drawn to her. It was unexplainable. Something about her just made you want to be near her. Everyone else couldn't help it just as much as Carmilla couldn't. And usually she didn't want to. But today was different. Watching this ridiculous Scooby gang of random misfits talking rapidly to one another made her actually wish she wasn't so damn drawn to Laura Hollis.

 _Until she looked at her_.

Until she saw the genuine smile that lit up her eyes, and how much she cared about the people sitting with her, how animated she got when she talked, the cute facial expressions she would make and how amazing she was. Thats when she completely gave up trying to resist the pull and just accepted what was. She was so far gone for this girl and she knew she was only going to fall deeper with every day she spent with her.

Laura looked across to Carmilla, shrugged and gave her an apologetic smile. They had been studying the chapter on religion and science when suddenly they weren't at the table alone anymore.

“I am not letting you destroy my house for this party!” Danny slammed her hand on the table.

“Its not my fault we cant use my house for the party! _Someone_ got a little too excited about bubble bath at the last one.” Kirsch looked pointedly at Laura when he said it.

Laura sucked in a breath between her teeth, “yaaa, about that. Um, my bad?” her face scrunched up into a guilty expression.

That was a memory that came back to Laura slowly from the night of her date with Danny. She had gone to use the bathroom after her game of beer pong and many, many shots and found a giant bottle of bubble bath. She thought it would be a great idea to put it in the hot tub out back. The hot tub foamed like crazy, covering the lawn in bubbles. It was awesome for the party, not so much for the lawn.

“Our landlord was pissed that we killed the lawn and threatened to evict the Zetas if there was any more damage. We figured we better wait a while before we throw another party.” Kirsch sounded proud and sad at the same time.

Suddenly a pan of brownies slammed onto the table, causing everyone to jump and look up at Lafontaine.

“Eat one. I dare you.” They said in a harsh voice, crossing their arms and staring angrily at the brownies.

Carmilla slowly leaned forward, finally inserting herself into the action at the table cautiously. “Uh, you alright there laf?” she asked looking at the pan of brownies on the table.

They looked edible, but the way Laf was glaring at them made her weary to actually try one.

“No seriously. Try one.” They continued to glare at the brownies.

Perry glanced around the table at everyone with a worried expression before reaching forward and picking up pieces and handing them to everyone. Everyone took small bites of the brownie at about the same time.

“I’ve made about 6 pans of these things and they all taste like this” Laf shook their head, still looking angry.

Kirsch threw the whole thing in his mouth and practically swallowed without chewing before giving a shrug. Danny took a bite and chewed slowly, trying her best to keep a satisfied face. Perry took a big bite and forced a smile. Laura and Carmilla took small bites and looked at each other as soon as they had. Laura face twisted into one of disgust then quickly she tried to hide it with a pain filled smile.

As soon as the brownie was in Carmilla’s mouth she spit it back out into her hand, “Woah, Laf this is disgust— ow!”

Laura had kicked her in the shin under the table, gaining her attention before shooting her a stern look.

Carmilla cleared her throat and looked back up at Laf, “by which i mean.. 6 pans huh? Well done, you.” she coughed as she dropped the brownie onto a napkin on the table. She opened and closed her mouth, moving her tongue around like she was trying to get rid of the taste left over from the brownie.

“Sweetie, these are…” Even Perry didn't know what to say.

Laf let out a big sigh, “They are nasty. Thats what they are.” They grabbed a chair from a nearby table and pulled it over to join the group.

With 5 people already sitting at the small table together, it was plenty crowded. Laf squeezing their way in made it extremely cozy, and far too claustrophobic for Carmilla’s liking. Laura caught on to Carmilla’s discomfort and tapped her foot against Carmilla’s boot under the table. Carmilla looked confused for a minute and looked around the table until she spotted Laura’s small smile. She gave her a half smile and tapped her foot back.

“I have to have 500 brownies made by Friday for the faculty halloween luncheon and the girl that does all the baking for the Coffee Shop just quit. Something about needing more time to study.” They slouched in their chair and let their head fall backwards dramatically, throwing their arms up into the air, “This is college! Who studies?!”

Carmilla couldn't help but chuckle at the dramatics, earning her a stern look from Perry. She glanced over at Laura who was trying to suppress her own smile. Carmilla gave her a wink and grabbed her phone from off the table. She stood up and walked out the door and stood on the step just outside.

“I can help you make the brownies.” Perry smiled warmly at Laf and took hold of their hand, giving it a squeeze.

Danny and Kirsch shared a look, _when had that become a thing?_

Laura tuned out the new conversation taking place at the table and looked out the door at Carmilla. She was on her phone leaning back against the wall. Gosh she was attractive. No matter what she was doing, she always just looked… _gah_! Carmilla came back in the door and looked at Laura. She smiled and mouthed, ‘grab your stuff’ as she walked back to the table. Laura was confused and not sure what was going on but she wasn't about to ignore Carmilla’s instructions. She put her papers they had been using to study in her bag and watched as Carmilla took her jacket off the back of her chair and put it on. As soon as her own jacket was on, she walked behind Laura and grabbed her jacket and held it out, waiting to help Laura into it.

By now everyone had noticed what she was doing and they were all watching her curiously. Laura stood, looking just as confused as the rest of the table, and slipped her arms into the jacket Carmilla was holding open for her.

“As much fun as it is to watch you all panic over brownies and bubble bath, we have some studying to do.” She drawled. She held out her hand in front of Laura, waiting for her to take hold of it.

Laura looked slowly around the table, as if looking for someone to explain what was happening, before taking hold of Carmilla’s hand. As soon as she did, Carmilla closed her grip and turned and started walking to the door, dragging Laura behind her.

“I guess I’ll see you guys later!” Laura called back as Carmilla pulled her through the door.

They were walking down the sidewalk when Laura realized Carmilla was still holding firmly to her hand.  They were walking side by side, Carmilla wasn't dragging her along, so there was technically no _need_ for her to be holding it still. Not that she was complaining. 

"Not that I'm not grateful you got us out of the chaos back there but, where exactly are we going?" Laura sped up her pace a bit to keep up with Carmilla.  She was moving quicker than usual, completely abandoning the casual saunter she usually had. 

"You'll see" Carmilla responded with a sly smile as she lifted her phone and sent off a quick text.

They made their way across campus, navigating their way between buildings keeping up their brisk pace. Until they came around a corner and were headed straight for the Keller Science Building. Laura glanced over at Carmilla curiously, it was getting late and most of the campus was empty. Surely the science building would be locked. Even still, Carmilla was leading her straight to it. 

They approached the building and suddenly someone was opening the doors from inside. 

Carmilla greeted him with a nod, "J.P."  Then she turned to Laura, “we should leave our stuff here.” She let go of Laura’s hand and dropped her jacket off her shoulders, and placed it on a rock near the entrance.

Laura watched her skeptically then slowly dropped her back pack on the ground and placed her own jacket on top of Carmilla’s.

J.P. wiggled his eyebrows as he smiled and held the door open wide. Carmilla took hold of Laura’s hand and walked by him, leading Laura through the door.  J.P. Shut the door and locked it so it could only be opened from the inside as soon as they were in the building. He then walked ahead of Laura and Carmilla and lead them down a couple hallways and up a flight of stairs. 

Laura was still completely unaware of what was happening but Carmilla’s expression of surety made it easy to follow her blindly.  That was something Laura found extremely attractive about Carmilla. Her confidence. She seemed so sure of her self and always so sure of her decisions. 

J.P. stopped in front of a pair of double doors and looked both ways down the hallway. Suddenly Laura felt like maybe they were doing something they shouldn't be and got nervous, glancing down the hallway herself.  

Carmilla noticed the apprehension on her face and gave the hand she was still holding a squeeze.

"Worried, cupcake?"

"No." She scoffed, "maybe. Ok, yes." She giggled nervously, "are we supposed to be here?” she whispered, moving closer to Carmilla.

Carmilla gave her a thoughtful look, pursing her lips and narrowing her eyes, "do I seem like the type to break the rules?"

Laura gave her a disbelieving look, "that's exactly the type you are, Carm" she put her free hand on her hip, giving Carmilla a bit of attitude. 

Carmilla chuckled, "just trust me, ok?"

J.P. unlocked the doors in front of them and held one open wide letting Carmilla lead Laura into a completely dark room, except for the little amount of light streaming in from the hallway. 

He tossed a flashlight over to Carmilla, "I'll be back in an hour." He glanced down the hallway again then looked back at Carmilla with a serious face, "if anyone else catches you in here.." He pointed at them both, "you don't know me." he gave Carmilla a mischievous smile and walked away, letting the door slowly shut, leaving them in the dark room alone. 

Laura gripped Carmilla’s hand with both of hers, squeezing it tight while she whispered “We aren't supposed to be here! I knew it!" She stepped closer to Carmilla, pressing her side against her out of nervousness. 

Carmilla laughed, Laura couldn't help but smile and relax at the sound. It was beginning to be one of her favorite things, Carmilla’s laugh. 

She gave Laura's hand a squeeze before she let go and stepped away from her, "don't move." She flipped on the flashlight and started walking away. 

Laura followed the light from the flashlight with her eyes until it disappeared around a corner and left her standing in the unfamiliar room in the dark.  She couldn't even see her hands when she held them up in front of her face. She nervously played with her hands, afraid to move or make any noise.  She was never one to break the rules so being in this situation made her extremely nervous, but at the same time she was unexpectedly excited too.  Carmilla seemed to have that effect on her. 

She stood there for what felt like an eternity but in actuality was only a couple minutes. "Carm?" She whispered as she stretched her hands out in front of her and started blindly walking in the direction Carmilla and the flashlight had gone. "I swear if you just left me here to be funny-"

"Calm down cutie" Carmilla drawled with a chuckle, startling Laura. She was suddenly right in front of her but hadn't used the flashlight to get back and Laura hadn't heard her at all.   Carmilla reached out and found Laura's arm. She let her hand drag down it to find her hand and laced their finger together.  

Laura relaxed at the touch and let herself step in tight to her side again.

"I just had to find something" she whispered, Laura could tell she was only inches away and it made her whole body tingle.  "Do you remember what we were talking about before the ginger squad made camp at our table?"

Laura could hear the sarcasm in her voice and immediately pictured the annoyed look she must have on her face. "Science and religion."

"Correct. I'd give you a cookie but.." She trailed off and flipped on the flashlight, pointing it at the ground. 

Laura relaxed a bit more at not being surrounded by complete darkness anymore. She glanced over at Carmilla, the low light accentuating her features beautifully and she suddenly felt her heart start to beat quicker. 

Carmilla gave her a small smile and started leading her further into the darkness. They walked slowly until they were standing in what Laura assumed was the center of the room. 

"Do you know who Galileo Galilei is?" Carmilla asked quietly, switching off the flashlight again. 

"Umm, didn't he invent the telescope?"

"Close. He's often mistaken as the inventor but technically he only improved it." Carmilla leaned over and set the flashlight on the ground and pulled something from her pocket. "He was actually an Italian astronomer, physicist, mathematician, engineer, and philosopher who played a major role in the scientific revolution during the Renaissance." 

"Sounds like a cool guy." Laura commented playfully.

This made Carmilla laugh loudly for a second before she began speaking softly again. "Galileo observed the Milky Way, previously believed to be nebulous, and found it to be a multitude of stars packed so densely that they appeared from Earth to be clouds." 

The way she spoke about it made it sound romantic. Like it was this thing of wonder that was meant to be loved and adored from afar. Laura could feel Carmilla fiddling with something in her hand. She knew whatever she was doing would probably be easier with both hands but she wasn't about to let go of Carmilla’s hand that was laced in hers unless she had to. Out of nervousness, and because she just loved the way it felt in her own. 

Carmilla must have figured it out with one hand because Laura heard a loud 'click' and then the room was suddenly filled with stars rotating slowly around them. 

Laura's jaw dropped and her eyes went wide at the sight of stars literally surrounding them. "Oh my gosh" escaped her mouth in a whisper as she turned her body around, looking around the room now filled with the tiny lights. Thousands of lights filled the room, scattered across the ceiling, walls and even the floor. Clusters of stars and constellations spread throughout the room, giving off a magical glow. Stars, planets, galaxies, floated around them.  It felt like the walls and ceiling had disappeared and they were standing outside surrounded by the night sky.

"He even located other stars too distant to be visible with the naked eye.” Carmilla whispered close enough that Laura could feel her breath on her ear, making her body shiver.

It's like they were floating together in the heavens.  She looked over at Carmilla still in awe. Carmilla’s head was tilted backwards looking above them with the most honest and beautiful smile on her face. Laura thought being surrounded by thousands of stars was the most beautiful thing she had ever seen. That is, until Carmilla looked over at her with the same honest smile she had before and suddenly the stars were being reflected in her eyes, making _her_ the most beautiful thing Laura had ever seen.

“Carm, this is- this is incredible.” She was looking into Carmilla’s eyes and her chest felt tight and she had to remind herself to breathe. “Its beautiful” she whispered as she turned to look around the star filled room once again.

“Don’t tell me you’ve never been to the planetarium before?” She asked, keeping her eyes on Laura, “It’s my favorite place on campus.”

Laura just looked back at her and shook her head, unable to form words.

Carmilla smiled and gave her hand a tug, “Here, let me show you-“ She pulled Laura towards one of the walls covered in stars. She lifted the hand that was holding Laura’s and untangled their fingers. She quickly grabbed her hand again, placing her palm on the back of Laura’s hand so she could guide it as she traced the outline of a constellation.

“This..” She traced a line of stars with Laura’s hand, “Is Pegasus.”

Laura turned her head quickly too look at Carmilla, suddenly very interested in constellations.

“Pegasus represents the son of Neptune and Medusa who eventually became the thundering horse of Zeus and the carrier of his lightning bolts.” Carmilla spoke softly, leaning close to Laura.

On the outside Carmilla seemed completely unaffected by their close proximity or the fact that they were alone in a dark room _filled with fucking stars_. But on the inside, she was the exact opposite of calm. She could hear her heart beating in her ears and the faint tug she usually felt when she spent time with Laura was now a full blown vice grip on her insides. She had been nervous about bringing her here at first, not really knowing how it would go or if she would even be ok with breaking a few rules to make it happen, but it was going much better than she imagined. Laura was standing close to her, and watching her intently, their hands were connected at every possible opportunity and Carmilla couldn't help but notice the blonde looking at her lips every time she spoke. This could be it. This could be the perfect moment to make her move.

Carmilla led Laura to another area in the room and just as before, lifted her hand to trace another line of stars. This time she stood behind her, pressing the front of her body against Laura’s back, leaning over her shoulder to whisper directly in her ear.

“This one right here..” she whispered slowly-

Laura felt a shiver run down her spine and had to concentrate to keep upright as Carmilla’s lips brushed her ear as she whispered into it.

“This is Aquarius. Also know as, Ganymede.” After tracing the constellation she took Laura’s hand that was in hers and dropped it down slowly and placed it at her side. She let go of Laura’s hand and slid her own hand up Laura’s arm gently, her body still pressed against her.

Laura’s breath hitched at the touch and her eyes fluttered shut. Carmilla’s voice was intoxicating. It was low and a little raspy, completely seductive.

Once Carmilla’s hand had traced the length of Laura’s arm, she slowly started to brush it back down the opposite way. Using the tips of her fingers to drag along her skin, leaving a trail of goosebumps in its path.

“Ganymede, was a Trojan youth who was so beautiful that he was carried off by Zeus to the heavens to be the cupbearer for the Olympic gods.” She poke slowly and quietly in to her ear.

Laura swallowed hard, there was a thick knot in her throat, and she had to take in a deep breath. It felt like her heart was beating out of her chest and it was taking everything in her to keep her breathing normal. Whatever energy she had felt when she touched Carmilla’s hand that first day in the library had more than doubled in intensity at what she was doing now. Carmilla’s hands were gentle, her skin soft, and Laura felt like there was electricity flowing everywhere that she touched her.

Carmilla’s fingers made it down Laura’s arm and to her hand again, she kept moving them down and played with Laura’s fingers gently for a moment, the pair staying silent. Carmilla kept her eyes on Laura’s face as she moved her body around her so she was standing in front of her instead of pressed against her back. Laura's eyes were still closed and her eyebrows twitched up slightly as Carmilla moved. Once Carmilla was standing in front her her, only inches between them, she watched as Laura’s chest filled with air and then stopped moving, her mouth opened slightly and there was just the hint of a smile on her lips.

Carmilla bit her bottom lip, trying to stifle the laugh that was building within her. _Laura was just so damn adorable_. “Breathe, cupcake.” She whispered playfully.

Laura immediately let the air out of her chest and took another deep breathe, before she bit her own lip and shook her head. She dropped her head to look at the floor as her cheeks started to pink. She was so damn turned on by this girl and all they were doing was looking at constellations.

Carmilla reached a hand out to find Laura’s, intertwined their fingers and took a small step closer to her. Laura looked up, her face timid as she watched Carmilla closely.

Carmilla kept her eyes locked on Laura’s, watching for a reaction that told her to stop what she was doing, but it never came. She lifted her free hand and slid it up to cup Laura’s cheek, her thumb brushing gently along her cheek. Laura’s eyelids fluttered and she leaned into the touch. Carmilla let herself smile as she leaned in, her own eyes fluttering shut as her lips got closer to Laura’s.

“Who’s in here?!”

A deep booming voice echoed through the star filled room, causing the girls to practically leap apart from one another in surprise.

“Shit!” Carmilla whispered harshly as she moved back towards Laura, “Shhh” she whispered and grabbed Laura’s arm and pulled her down into a low crouch.

Carmilla studied Laura’s face for a moment. The face she was literally seconds away from kissing before some lackwit came barging in. Laura’s eyes were wide but she had a huge grin on her face. _Looks like breaking the rules excited her, after all._

Carmilla lifted a hand to cover her mouth to keep herself from laughing. _This situation was ridiculous_. Laura mirrored the action, covering her own mouth as she started to giggle herself.

“What do we do?” Laura barely got it out in a whisper between giggles, her eyes wide, her shoulders shaking from trying to stifle her laugh.

Carmilla tried to give her a stern look as she shushed her but she couldn't help but smile at seeing Laura’s reaction to the situation. “follow me” she whispered as she took hold of Laura’s hand and led her along the wall towards the door, still crouched low.

Whoever had barged in, clearly wasn't happy, but they also were having a hard time finding the light switch. Which was definitely a good thing for the girls trying to move about the room unseen.

“Where the hell is the light?!” The voice yelled out again, “I can hear someone here! No one is supposed to be in here!”

Just then the room was filled with light. It took a second for the girls eyes to adjust but as soon as they did, Carmilla gave Laura’s hand a pull and they both stood up and took off running towards the door.

To find the light switch the person who had found them had to walk into the room far enough that it left the door unblocked making it easy for them to escape.

Once they were out of the room they took off down the hall as fast as they could, they rounded the corner and practically flew down the set of stairs and down another hallway until they found a door that led outside. They burst through the door together in a fit of laughter. They kept running till they made it around to the other side of the building then Carmilla slowed her pace, Laura noticed and did the same.

Carmilla stopped and put her hand out against the building and leaned over to catch her breath, still laughing. Laura leaned over next to Carmilla, her hands on her knees. After they had both caught their breath they looked at each other, eyes wide, huge smiles on their faces.

“Well that was exciting” Laura started laughing again and nudged Carmilla’s shoulder with her own.

Carmilla started laughing with her and playfully nudged her back.

Their laughter eventually died down and they stood there looking at each other, still breathing heavily, both aware of the serious tension between them. _They had almost kissed._ They were definitely about to kiss when they were interrupted. So what was supposed to happen now?

Carmilla let out a nervous laugh, “I guess thats enough science for tonight.” she lifted a hand to rub the back of her neck.

Laura smiled shyly at her, “So far, I think thats been my favorite chapter” She bit her bottom lip and joined her hands together in front of her, playing with her fingers absentmindedly.

Carmilla smiled wide before bringing her lips together to try to hide it, causing Laura to giggle and blush.

The dark haired girl was about to say something else when her phone started ringing, causing them both to jump.

They looked at each other and both let out a laugh. Clearly they were still on edge from their exciting escape just moments ago.

Carmilla pulled her phone from her pocket and answered the call, smiling at Laura, “Hey J.P.” she turned around and kicked at a rock on the ground, “No we made it out in time.” She paused then laughed at something JP said, “He didn't see us. He will have no idea it was you.” She laughed again and turned around to look at Laura.

Laura just watched her with a smile still plastered on her face. She loved seeing this side of Carmilla. Happy, playful, laughing. She was brilliant and sweet and had been a major help with her history class, but she was definitely more than that. Laura knew that whatever happened in that room filled with stars changed things. For both of them. Whatever was happening was exciting and she couldn't ignore the tightness in her chest every time she heard Carmilla laugh or saw her smile.

“Thanks again. I owe you one.” She smiled at Laura as she hung up the phone and put it in her pocket. “You must be freezing, lets go find our things.”

Laura didn't realize she was shivering slightly and her arms were covered in goosebumps until Carmilla mentioned the cold. Carmilla reached forward with both her hands and rubbed them quickly up and down Laura’s arms, creating a little bit of heat from the friction. She then pulled Laura in close to her side and wrapped her arm around her, using the hand wrapped around her back to continue to rub one of her arms.

Suddenly Laura didn't care how cold she was. All she could think of was how much she loved being close to Carmilla. The way she touched her. How gentle and sweet she was. Her smile. Her laugh. How she had almost kissed her. _How badly she wanted to kiss her._

They found the rock that was holding their things and quickly put their jackets on and started walking back towards the coffee shop. It was closed by now but it seemed like neutral ground for them to end the night at. As they were walking Carmilla glanced over at Laura. She was gripping her backpack straps tightly, walking slowly, with a smile still on her face. Carmilla shoved her hands in her pockets and turned her head to watch the sidewalk in front of them.

Laura felt Carmilla looking at her and forced herself to keep her eyes forward, as soon as Carmilla turned though, she couldn't help but look over at her. She watched as her loose curls slightly bounced with every step, she moved so gracefully like walking was an elegant dance, her cheeks were pink from the cold air, she was breathtaking.

Laura stepped sideways and looped one of her arms through Carmilla’s. Carmilla's eyes stayed glued on the sidewalk but the hint of a smile started to show on her face. She turned her head slightly to look at Laura and was met with a shy smile. Carmilla shook her head gently and let herself smile wide at the girl next to her, then she pulled her hand from her pocket and laced her fingers with Laura’s.

No matter how hard she tried, she knew it was pointless to try and resist the way she felt about this girl.


	8. Jealousy with a side of spilled coffee

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Halloween preparations!  
> Carmilla's mother makes an appearance.  
> Someone gets dumped, someone gets a date, someone gets covered in coffee.

“Thanks for helping me with the brownies, Per” They smiled across the counter at the red head mixing together brownie batter furiously, “I’d be lost without you.”

“Of course!” Perry cracked an egg into the batter and picked up the whisk again and began mixing it all together. She was something else in the kitchen. Completely focused and actually a bit intense.

Laf watched her throwing ingredients into the multiple bowls on the counter and then she went from one bowl to the next with her whisk. They did have to make 500 brownies before the luncheon but Laf hadn't expected her to make them all at the same time. They reached forward and stuck their finger into one of the bowls filled with batter.

Immediately Perry slapped them hard on the wrist, “Sweety! We cant use that bowl now that your finger has been in it!” she gave them a disappointed look.

Laf looked guilty for a second then smiled, “That means we can keep this batch” They stuck their finger in again and pulled it to their mouth to lick off the batter. It tasted amazing. They made a note to get Perry to bake more often.

Perry kept whisking one of the other bowls quickly and shook her head at Laf.

Laf noticed her seriousness and took a slow step towards her, bringing the ruined bowl of batter with them. “Don’t be so serious, Per. Try some brownie batter.” They smiled mischievously and held out a finger covered in batter towards Perry.

Perry’s eyes went wide and she stopped whisking, “Now sweetie..” She slowly took a step back away from Lafontaine, giving them a pointed look, “you know we have a lot to do here.” She took another step away as Laf took one closer, “We don't have time to play around.” Her eyes were wider and she quickly set the bowl down on the counter.

It was perfect timing because as soon as the bowl had been set down, Laf lunged forward, smearing the batter across Perry face. Perry’s mouth dropped open wide in surprise before turning into a giant smile. Laf was just standing there laughing so she reached forward into the bowl they were holding and covered her hand in the batter. She brought it up and slapped her whole hand on Laf’s face and slowly dragged it down, leaving their face caked with the chocolate batter.

“No way” Laf chuckled and reached back into the bowl.

Perry squealed and took off around the counter, Laf following close behind ready to cover her in chocolate. They chased her around the counter until she was back where they started. There was batter on the floor that had dripped off Laf’s face and Perry stepped right in it. Her feet flew out from underneath her and she started falling backwards. Laf was right behind her and threw the bowl of batter up so they could reach out and catch Perry, which they did quite impressively. They were in a heap on the ground when the bowl came crashing down, spraying batter all over them and the entire kitchen.

They both sat on the floor, tangled in one another, covered in brownie batter, laughing. Slowly Laf started to get up, slipping a little in the batter before finally getting their footing. They reached down to help Perry up, pulling her to her feet. They smiled at each other for a moment before Laf reached forward and wiped a bit of batter off Perry cheek with their finger, and stuck it in their mouth. “You should make brownies more often.” They smiled wide.

Perry leaned forward and placed a chaste kiss on Laf’s cheek, “Maybe I will.” Then she turned and went back to whisking the bowls they hadn't ruined.

Laf blushed and walked over to the counter to help.

They finished baking the brownies covered in batter.

——

Carmilla was packing up her things when the door to her classroom swung open. She heard the familiar click of heels on the tile floor and glanced over.  She let out a sigh, “Hello, Mother.”

She grabbed her phone and quickly sent a text to Laura telling her she wasn't going to make it for their study session today. Her mother rarely made appearances at the school and when she did, it was never good. Or quick.

——

_**Carm (3:40pm):** Can’t make it today. Tomorrow?_

_**Laura (3:41pm):** Everything ok? Tomorrow is great! :)_

Laura walked through the library trying to find an empty couch or arm chair. Since she was studying alone today, she might as well do it in a comfortable place. She found one near the back, dropped her bag on the floor and plopped down into the cushion. She looked around and noticed the library was actually pretty busy for a Wednesday afternoon. She watched people sitting at tables, their faces buried in books, looking exhausted. People were walking down isles, pulling stacks of books to check out. Piles getting higher with each person. Some were studying alone, some in groups.

She looked down at her own bag full of books and suddenly had the overwhelming feeling of wishing Carmilla was there. She made studying easy. She didn't know how, but the way Carmilla explained things and talked about things, it was easy to listen to her. Easy to understand. She always seemed excited about what they were talking about, which made Laura excited to learn it.

Carmilla was such a mystery. She always seemed so disinterested in everything, and practically everyone. She didn't talk to many people, her form of communication was mostly raising an eyebrow or rolling her eyes. She was probably the coolest person Laura had ever met. But when she started talking about history, she turned into the biggest nerd. She would go from gorgeous, super cool, supermodel status, to this geeky, adorable, person quicker than Laura ever imagined possible.

Laura had noticed though, that the nerdy side of Carmilla would shut down as soon as anyone else was around. It’s like she was only able to be that part of herself when it was just her and Laura. Which made Laura giddy, getting to see this part of Carmilla that no one else did. Plus with Danny, Kirsch and Perry showing up randomly to their study sessions, Carmilla had been getting better at keeping her snarky comments to herself. Even if she hadn't mastered keeping her glares to herself yet.

Laura let out a sigh and reached down to grab her bag, checking her phone quickly to see if Carmilla had texted her back. This was becoming a problem. Carmilla was constantly overtaking her thoughts and that definitely wasn't helping her efforts to study. Especially after last night. It took Laura _hours_ to fall asleep after the night with Carmilla. Breaking in to the planetarium, how amazing that whole thing was, Carmilla almost kissing her, holding her hand walking across campus.. She kept replaying the entire night, butterflies swarming her stomach every time she thought about it.

She had been so excited to see her today. Excited to see where things were going for them. They hadn't really talked about it last night but Laura liked Carmilla and was pretty sure Carmilla liked her. I mean, duh. _Right?_ But something must have come up because here she was, sitting alone in the library, not studying.

Laura let out a groan as she opened her backpack and pulled out her history book and opened it up on her lap. Global Commerce. _Yay._

——

“We’ve been over this mother” Carmilla lifted her hand to pinch the bridge of her nose. She was tired of having this conversation. “I’m a teacher here. I teach. This is what I do.” She dropped her hand to look up at the woman clearly displeased with her.

She was an intimidating woman to say the least. Her hair was pulled back tightly into a slick bun. Her button up collared shirt pressed perfectly, how she had been wearing it all day and it was still void of wrinkles was probably due to witch craft. Her pencil skirt fit her tightly, ending below the knees, and she had on a pair of heels that made her tower over her subordinates.

She crossed her arms over her chest rigidly, “Carmilla.”

Hearing her say her name always gave Carmilla the chills.

“When we discussed you being a part of Silas Preparatory Academy one day, this is not what I had in mind.”

“Yes, but this _is_ what I had in mind.” Carmilla rolled her eyes and leaned back against her desk, gripping the edge of it hard enough her nails were sure to leave imprints. She was trying to seem unaffected by the visit from her mother, but the woman always put her on edge.

Carmilla had been in foster care most of her childhood, that is until she had been placed in Lilita Morgan’s care at the age of 14. She wasn't sure why the woman even fostered children. She didn't seem the type to like kids. She had a son of her own, a little brat of a kid. You could tell he was desperate for her attention, but she was so uninvolved in his life, it made you wonder why she would willingly accept another child into her home.

“The attitude isn't appreciated.” Lilita uncrossed her arms and stepped forward towards Carmilla.

Carmilla couldn't help the sharp movement her body made to retract away from the woman approaching. Or the immediate drop of her shoulders, overcome with defeat with just the simplest of scolding from her.

“Remember who you were before I brought you into my home and adopted you.” She reached forward and brushed a strand of Carmilla’s hair away from her face.

The gesture would seem sweet from anyone else, but coming from her it felt cold, calculated. Like it was planned affection in order to acquire something in return.

“I had big plans for you, Carmilla.” Her body was stiff, voice thick with disappointment, “You can imagine my regret when you put our plans of you following in my footsteps aside to become-“ she paused, her face twisting with distaste, examining Carmilla, “ _This._ ” She lifted her hand to gesture to her as a whole.

Carmilla clenched her jaw, trying to stifle the anger filling her entire body. Her hands started to ache with how tightly she was gripping the desk, she could feel her temples pulsing with her rapid heart rate and her whole body felt tense. She counted down from ten silently, trying to force herself to calm down. She knew blowing up at her mother wouldn't help the situation.

“I’m sorry I didn't turn out like you had planned, Mother.” She tried to sound sincere but the hint of sarcasm wasn't missed by her mother.

Lilita’s eyes narrowed slightly, her expression hard, yet void of emotion.

Carmilla’s phone buzzed on her desk. Laura had replied right away but Carmilla had ignored it. The repeat alert that she had a text caused the phone to vibrate on top of the desk. Carmilla reached back for it quickly, unlocking the screen and locking it again, not reading the text.

Her mother lifted an eyebrow disapprovingly, “One of your, _playmates,_ I’m sure.” She lifted her arm to check the watch on her wrist. She faced Carmilla and clasped her hands in front of her. “I have another appointment. I trust you will consider what I’ve had to say.” She said it like it was a request, but Carmilla knew it was more of a command. One she had been barely evading already.

She gave Carmilla a stern look then turned and walked quickly out of the classroom. As soon as the door shut Carmilla let out a big breathe, letting her body deflate. She always felt emotionally and physically exhausted after dealing with her mother. She walked around her desk and sank into her chair. She ran her hand through her hair and looked down at her phone sitting on her desk.

She unlocked the screen and read Laura’s text and sent a quick reply.

What was she doing with this girl? Laura didn't deserve the baggage that came along with Carmilla’s life. She deserved so much more. Could she really give Laura more than that? Or should she end whatever this was before they both ended up with broken hearts?

——

“Lauraaa..” Danny whispered, crouching down to be at the same level as Laura.

When Laura didn't move, Danny reached her hand out and shook her shoulder gently and spoke a little louder, “Laura, wake up.”

Laura shot up in her sat abruptly, gripping the arms of her chair tightly, “Spain lost dominance when the value of silver fell!”

Danny couldn't help but Laugh, “Is that so?”

Laura turned her head to look at her, a little confused at where she was and what she was doing. She let out a sigh when it registered that she was still in the library. She brought her hands up and rubbed her eyes, “I must have fallen asleep studying”

Danny stood up, “Unless you drool when you're awake, I’d say thats accurate.”

Laura’s eyes went wide and she immediately check herself for drool, wiping her face and looking at where her head had been leaning.

Danny let out another laugh, “I’m kidding, Hollis” She stepped over to the arm chair next to Laura’s and sat down.

“Oh. Right.” Laura gave her an embarrassed smile and shifted in her seat, trying to wake herself up completely.

Danny looked around, “Queen of darkness bail on you today?” She had meant it as a joke but it came out laced with hostility.

Laura gave her a small smile and shrugged, “Something came up.”

She didn't get what the deal was between Danny and Carmilla. They never spoke to each other, they barely even acknowledged each others presence when they were in the same place, but it was obvious they didn't like each other. At the mention of Carmilla, she grabbed for her phone to check her texts.

_**Carm (5:16):** Ya. See you tomorrow, cutie ;)_

Laura smiled wide at the text she had received from Carmilla. She wasn't completely sure what was going on between them, but whatever it was, she knew it made her happy.

“I could help.” Danny leaned forward in the chair, getting closer to Laura trying to gain her attention, an excited expression was on her face. “you know, compare notes. I think we’d make a pretty good team.”

Laura was pulled from her thoughts about Carmilla with Danny’s offer to help her study. “Sure, yeah.” The offer surprised her and she was a little hesitant about it. She didn't think Danny knew much on the subject of history but Carmilla had surprised her, so maybe Danny would too. And she wasn't about to pass up help, even though she really just wanted Camilla to be the one that was helping her.

“Great! Catch me up on what you were going over before your nap?” Danny smiled warmly at the shorter girl and leaned in a bit more so she could see the book in Laura’s lap.

Laura felt the guilty nervous feeling in her stomach as she went into what she had covered so far that day, Danny paying close attention to her as she spoke. They studied for a little while before Laura started feeling a little overwhelmed. Danny was obviously trying her best, but she was no Carmilla. She wasn't quite as knowledgeable on the subjects they were talking about and it left Laura feeling more confused than when they had started.

“How about a hot chocolate break?” Laura’s face looking tired and a bit defeated.

Danny picked up on the depleted energy from the girl she was sitting next to. She gave her a caring smile and stood up slowly, “I think thats a great idea” she reached out her hand to help Laura up which she happily accepted. Danny pulled Laura to her feet but didn't let go of her hand. Laura’s eyes widened and she looked down at their connected hands.

Danny started to lead her through the library towards the coffee shop, “I know I’ve been pretty busy with the halloween party prep and you’ve been swamped with homework but I was hoping we could go out again. Soon?” She looked down at Laura.

Laura quickly tried to wipe the panicked expression off her face. She had seen Danny a few times since their date but every time she had, it felt like things were back to the way they were before then, like they were just friends. And suddenly she was holding her hand and wanting another date? She didn't know what to do.

“Oh. ya. I mean, we should hang out. Again.” obviously her mouth was working as well as her brain as she tried to string together a coherent sentence. She didn't know what to say. Technically her and Carmilla weren't _together_. I mean sure, they had almost kissed, and held hands and she really, really liked her. But she still wasn't sure exactly what Carmilla felt on the whole situation. And up until about a week ago, she had really liked Danny. She was still holding her hand though, so maybe she still did? Wouldn't she pull away if she didn’t? She was all kinds of confused.

They walked through the door to the coffee shop and Kirsch practically barreled into them.

“Summer Psycho!” He glanced down at their hands still connected.

Laura noticed the glance and slowly let go of Danny's hand and rubbed her palm on her pants.

“I need your help with something for the party.” He had a big grin on his face. Talking about this party made him seem like a kid in a candy shop. “I had a great idea for the haunted house, but we need to start working on it right away and your sisters wont let me in without you there.”

Danny laughed and crossed her arms, “They know better than to let you into our house.” She glanced down at Laura and gave her an apologetic smile, “Can we catch up later? Maybe continue our conversation?”

Laura’s was grateful for the interruption. She needed some time to process. “Yeah for sure. Go! Help Kirsch.” She nodded and gave Danny a reassuring smile.

Before Danny left with Kirsch she bent down and gave Laura a tight hug. “I’ll call you.”

Laura just forced a smile and waved at them as they left the coffee shop in a hurry. She made her way over to the counter and leaned her hip against it.

“What’ll it be miss Hollis?” Laf asked with a smile.

“Hot chocolate. Extra whipped cream.” Her voice lacking its usual energy.

“Extra whipped cream, eh?” Laf studied her face, noticing her somber demeanor, “Something wrong?”

“No.” she forced a smile. it wasn't believable in the slightest. “yes” she groaned and let her expression drop to a frown. “college is hard.”

Laf chuckled, “you’re telling me. Between homework and work, I’m probably going to die before I graduate.”

“oh yeah” Laura’s eyebrows came together thoughtfully, “I wasn't even talking about the school part.” she laughed humorlessly as Laf placed her hot chocolate on the counter and then handed her a brownie.

“Eat one of Perry’s brownies.” They gave her a encouraging smile, “It’ll help.”

Laura took a big bite and smiled. “Thanks Laf” She mumbled around the brownie in her mouth before turning and walking back to the library to get her stuff. She was done for the night, her brain couldn't handle anymore.

——

The halloween party was the next day and even Danny had to admit, the Zetas were doing a good job of decorating the Summer Society house. The place was covered in fake spider webs, tomb stones, plastic spiders, skeletons, and a shit load of other creepy things. When you walked inside, the windows were covered blacking out light from the sun. The hallways were draped in dark sheets and curtains, placed strategically to lead you through the house in a specific direction. The Haunted House was Kirsch’s favorite part and he always worked a little extra hard to make it scary.

“Um, where does this go?” Danny held up a severed head.

“Oh! I was looking for that!” Kirsch skipped over and grabbed it out of Danny hands. “WILL!!” he screamed to a guy across the lawn. Will turned around and Kirsch threw the head across the yard to him like a football. Will caught it and lifted his arms excitedly and Kirsch let out a holler while pumping his fist in the air.

“You guys are ridiculous.” Danny rolled her eyes and went to grab some more decorations.

“Hey guys! This looks amazing!” Laura was walking up the walkway towards the house, lugging her backpack with her.

Danny immediately turned, dropping the decorations she had in her hand, and went to give Laura a hug.

“You made it.” She smiled as she stepped back from the blonde.

“Little nerd hottie!” Kirsch hopped over the box of decorations and grabbed Laura, lifting her off the ground in a tight hug. “Come to see the master at work?” He gave her a good squeeze and then set her down.

Laura laughed as Kirsch put her back on her feet and looked around the yard. “This definitely is a master piece. I cant wait to see it at night!” She smiled up at the pair standing in front of her. “Anything I can do to help?”

Danny smiled down at her, “Yeah actually. You want to help me string these spider webs in the tree?”

Laura glanced over at the tree. It was a very tall tree. She let out a laugh, “I would love to.” She dropped her backpack and picked up a hand full of the webbing and followed Danny over to the tree. She looked over her shoulder and saw Kirsch and some other guy having a tug-o-war with a skeleton arm and laughed. “He gets pretty into this holiday doesn't he?”

Danny followed Laura’s line of site and saw Kirsch and Will wrestling over the arm on the lawn. She rolled her eyes, “They are idiots.”

“I like it.” Laura smiled and went to attach some webbing to the tree. She was still nervous about having the second date conversation with Danny. After thinking about it she realized that she did like Danny, but as a friend. Honestly she was probably one of her best friends. That’s why the conversation made her nervous. She didn't want Danny to take it badly and have it ruin their friendship. Plus, she really liked Carmilla and wanted to see where that could go. It had only been a day since she had seen her but it felt like longer. She was supposed to meet up with her pretty soon and couldn't wait. She was hoping helping them decorate would make the time pass faster.

“You’re planning on coming tomorrow night, right?” Danny asked with a nervous voice.

“Of course! I wouldn't miss it!” Laura’s focus was on trying to reach a branch above her head to connect the last piece of webbing in her hand. Danny saw her struggling and took the web from her hand and hooked it to the branch above her head.

“I could have gotten it.” Laura said playfully, but honestly she was a little annoyed. She couldn't help but notice Danny had a habit of doing things for her when it wasn't actually necessary. That was another thing keeping her from wanting to actually date her. Sometimes she felt like Danny treated her like a child and it bugged her.

Danny gave her a smile, “About tomorrow.” She stopped decorating and turned to face Laura.

Laura had a feeling she knew what was coming and desperately wanted to avoid it. She pulled her phone from her pocket to check the time, “Oh my gosh, I have to run! I’m supposed to meet Carmilla at the Coffee Shop in a few minutes to study.” She started walking to her bag, she turned back to Danny just slightly as she walked, “Can we finish talking later?”

Danny’s eyebrows came together, disappointment written on her face, “oh, yeah. Of course.” She started to follow Laura across the grass, “I could walk you to the coffee shop?”

Laura turned around abruptly, “no!”

Danny stopped walking, surprised at Laura’s firm denial.

Laura smiled quickly, “I mean, you just have a lot to do here still and if you leave who knows what will happen. Kirsch may end up breaking something or who knows what.” She quickly moved to her bag and slung it over her shoulder.

“Ya, you’re probably right” Danny replied confused slightly, but Laura was already making her way across the lawn back in the direction of the shop. “See you later!” She called after her before turning around to see Will in a headlock and Kirsch giving him a wet willy.

“Knock it off guys!” She threw a plastic pumpkin at them, hitting Kirsch in the head.

Kirsch dropped Will to the grass and stared down Danny, “You don't want to mess with me Lawrence.”

Danny gave him a challenging look, “Bring it, popped collar.”

——

Laura probably didn't need to rush to the coffee shop as fast as she had but whatever, she was excited. The last time she saw Carmilla was the night they broke into the planetarium and she still had butterflies from it. Studying with Carmilla was easily her favorite part of the day now, and she couldn't wait to see what kind of game they were going to play that day.

Carmilla was late, but that was pretty normal. Laura saw her before she even walked in the coffee shop. She walked up the step and stopped in front of the door. She just stood there, hands in her jacket pockets, looking at the handle. Something was different about her today, Laura could already feel it. She watched as Carmilla took a deep breathe and reached out for the door and walked in. She gave Laura a small smile as soon as she saw her, but it was different. She went behind the counter and got her own cup of coffee, ignoring the long line Laf was dealing with, and walked over to the table Laura was at.

Laura watched her closely, trying to figure out what was going on. Something just felt off, even though everything seemed normal. She gave her a shy smile as soon as she sat down.

“Hey.” She was suddenly blushing. Having Carmilla sitting in front of her made the butterflies that had made camp in her stomach from the other night come alive.

“Hey” Carmilla replied softly, looking into Laura’s eyes.

Laura count tell she was tired. Her eyes were soft, the way they always were when she looked at Laura. But they seemed a little sad, like something heavy was weighing on her.

“How are you?” Laura asked tentatively. She was curious at the difference in Carmilla’s demeanor but wasn't sure if they were at a place where she should really pry.

“I’m good. You?” Her answer was short. The conversation with her mother was still heavy on her mind. As well as the feeling she had afterwards, that her baggage was too much to put on Laura and she should probably end whatever this was before it went any further.

Laura smiled warmly, “I’m good.” She looked down at the book on the table and played with the corner of its cover, “missed you yesterday.” she shrugged, still focused on the book in front of her.

Carmilla’s eyes widened, locked on the girl across from her. Her expression changed immediately, running through several emotions quickly. Surprise, happiness, worry, sadness, pure affection. _Shit._ She didn't know what to do and it was frustrating the hell out of her.

She cleared her throat nervously, “um, should we..” she gestured to Laura’s book.

“oh right!” Laura sat up straight and opened her book to the chapter on the Rise and Fall of World Communism. _Gosh history was the least romantic thing sometimes._ “So what kind of game are we playing today?” She looked across the table, trying to hold back her excitement.

“Oh, um.” Carmilla reached across the table for the book, “I didn't really have one planned for today. I thought we could just use the book to go over the chapter.”

“Oh. Sure.” Laura tried to hide her disappointment. _Was she mad? What’s up with her today?_

Carmilla noticed. “Sorry, I just had a long day yesterday and class was a nightmare today and- you don't need to hear this. Lets just get into it, ok?” She scanned the page in front of her.

She could feel Laura’s eyes on her and everything just felt heavy. Her eyes, her shoulders, her heart. She knew she should let Laura go, but she didn't know if she could.

“Here’s the simple story.” She ran her hand through her hair and looked up at Laura, “There were two great challenges to liberal democracy in the twentieth century—” She shut the book in front of her and leaned her elbows on the table, “national fascism and world communism…” and off she went, to get lost in the world of history, Laura listening intently to everything she said.

There were a couple reasons she liked history so much. One being that it fascinated her to learn about things that happened before she was alive. The idea that so much had happened in the world before she even existed kind of blew her mind. How things had changed over the decades was interesting to her. There were things people tried to stop from happening, creating wars and tearing nations apart in the process. Sometimes they were successful in shutting it down, and other times what they were trying to avoid would happen anyway.

Another reason was due to the lack of history in her own life. She had been shuffled though so many foster homes before she landed in the Morgan house that she wasn't sure where she came from. She knew nothing about her birth parents, if she had siblings or any other relatives. Nothing. Its like she didn't exist before her adoption.

As a teenager she had tried to find her family. Her history. But never could. You would think with a name like Karnstein there would be something, but she couldn't never find anything or anyone. Her search for herself turned into a hobby of learning about other peoples history, which eventually gave her direction in college, helping her choose to become a history teacher. Sure she hated kids but when she saw their faces when things clicked and they suddenly became interested in things before them, and realized how hugely these things affected their lives, it made dealing with them worth it.

This however, was the topic of endless arguments with her mother. She had ‘encouraged’ Carmilla to go into Business and Finance and had planned to make her Head of the Board at Silas Prep following her graduation. Halfway through school though, Carmilla switched her majors without informing her mother and threw off her plans. Needless to say, she wasn't happy about it and was still trying to force Carmilla into giving up teaching to take over the Board.

Laura and Carmilla were about to dive into the exciting topic of the Cold War when suddenly their table was being taken over by the ginger squad and their puppy dog.

“I cant believe she would do that do you the day before your party.” Laf was patting Kirsch’s back as he sat down at the table.

They pulled a chair out for Perry, then sat down in the chair beside her. Danny grabbed a chair from a neighboring table and slid it over next to Laura’s chair, and sat in it backwards, leaning her arms across the back rest that was in front of her. Laura looked around the table and casually scooted her chair closer to Carmilla who was sitting next to her, clearly annoyed.

“Yeah, that totally sucks.” Danny added then quickly looked at Laura and gave her a smile.

Carmilla noticed and it was written all over her face.

Which, Laura noticed.

Annoyance was quickly changing to anger for Carmilla. After the last couple days she was already feeling like she had reached her breaking point. She was angry at her mother, her students, now the ginger giant, but mostly herself. She knew she had feelings for Laura and trying to ignore them was tearing her up inside. She wanted to be with her, but she didn't want to hurt her. And thats what she did. She hurt the people in her life, and she didn't want that for Laura.

Carmilla was pulled from her thoughts as Laura reached under the table and placed her hand on Carmilla’s leg gently. It calmed her immediately, prompting her to take in a deep breathe. She reached her own hand under the table and took hold of Laura’s but left them both sitting on her leg. They both smiled, but not at each other. They kept their eyes on the group in front of them.

Laura noticed Laf and Perry watching her and decided she had better contribute to the conversation before they realized what was happening under the table.

“wait, what happened Kirsch?” Laura asked, accomplishing the task of taking the attention off of her. 

Kirsch slouched further into his chair and dropped his head into his hands, “Sara Jane dumped me.”

"Hard too." Danny added, getting a glare from kirsch and disapproving look from Perry. "What?" She shrugged, "it's true! She dumped him for one of his so called bros"

"Seriously?" Carmilla scoffed.  Laura gave her hand a squeeze and she sat back into her chair.  yeah, she was whipped.

"She wouldn't even tell me which one. But that's like, against the bro code, so I don't know what to believe" kirsch looked absolutely heart broken but Laura got the feeling it was more from of the idea of one of his 'bros' betraying him and less from being dumped. 

He slouched a little further into his chair, leaning back against the backrest pouting, "now I don't have a date for my own party."

Carmilla shook her head. He was one sad puppy dog. 

"I can be your date." Laura exclaimed with a smile.

_What?!_

"What?!"

Carmilla had thought it but Danny was the one that actually said it out loud. Both turning to Laura in shock.

Laura looked at both of them and smiled awkwardly. She had the feeling Danny was going to ask her to be her date and she didn't want to have to deal with that.  She had hoped Carmilla would ask her but she doubted she was even going to go to the party at all, so she figured being Kirsch’s date would probably be the safest move. And maybe it would help cheer him up too. 

"Yeah. I mean, I can go with him. I was planning on going anyway." Laura tried to shrug it off like it wasn't a big deal. But realized it must be when she saw Danny's face, and felt Carmilla's hand slowly letting go of hers under the table. 

Kirsch perked up immediately, "Really?!" His smile wide, "that would be the best! Oh man! I totally know what our costumes can be too!" He stood up and leaned across the table to grab Laura in a hug.  

Everyone else shifted in their chairs to avoid getting hit as the table wobbled underneath Kirsch as he stretched over it.  Laura let out a laugh and accepted the hug, being tugged out of her chair a bit. 

When Kirsch finally let go she fell back into her seat clumsily.  Kirsch tried to stand upright but stepped into the table awkwardly, knocking Carmilla’s coffee over on the table.

"Dammit!"Carmilla shot up out of her seat and lunged for the papers and books set out on the table.  She picked them up off the table before any of them got wet with coffee, everyone watching in amazement at how quick her reflexes were. 

She stood upright holding the papers in the air out at her sides.  She glanced around the table at the stunned faces, all watching her intently.  

She let out a groan and looked down at herself.  She had been fast enough to save Laura's papers but not fast enough to save her pants.  Her dark jeans were covered with coffee all down the front of her legs.  

"Woah, sorry Carm-sexy" kirsch stepped back slowly watching the dark haired girls face, trying to gauge how angry she was. 

Carmilla closed her eyes and took a deep breathe, letting it out slowly.  She was frustrated with being interrupted by the Scooby gang, Danny's dumb face that was always smiling at Laura, Laura agreeing to be kirsch's date, and the fact that she still had no idea what to do about her feelings for Laura.  But this wasn't the place or the time to lose her cool.  

She clenched her jaw as she turned slowly and set down Laura's things on the empty table next to them.  Everyone was still watching her, not sure what to say or do.  

Perry leaned over to LaF, "sweetie why don't you go grab some-"

"Napkins. Right." They cut her off, finishing her thought.  They jumped up and ran over to the counter to grab a pile of napkins.  

Laura stood, her hands reaching out but not sure what to do to help, “Oh my gosh, Carm. I’m so sorry! Can I— What should I—“ She watched as Carmilla calmly set her things down and grabbed her jacket from off the back of the chair.  She was eerily calm.  

That same feeling that something was off settled heavily in Laura's stomach again. 

Danny had a smug grin on her face while she watched everything unfold. Laf noticed as they got back with the napkins and kicked her foot hard and gave her a glare. She rolled her eyes and sighed, "oh no, can I do anything?" She spoke slowly and It was full of sarcasm. 

LaF squeezed between Kirsch and Danny and was practically shoving the napkins in Carmilla’s face.  Carmilla threw her jacket on and lifted her hand in an attempt to stop everyone from what they were doing.  

"I'm fine." She glared at Danny, then glanced over to LaF and gave them a look that they immediately recognized as 'back off'.  "I'm just going to go.” she said calmly.

Laura sheepishly stepped towards her but Carmilla’s hand came back up stopping her. 

"Really. I'm good." She looked over at Laura, her body language still stiff but her look much softer now.  Completely different than the looks she had given everyone else. 

“Ok, if you're sure.” Laura spoke quietly. She couldn't shake the feeling in her gut something was up, something more than just the spilled coffee.

Carmilla nodded and headed for the door, leaving the rest of the group at the table.

Laf looked around the table at everyones faces. Kirsch plopped back down into his chair, knocking the table again, making it wobble. Laf rolled their eyes and smacked him the back of the head.

“Ow!” He reached up to rub the back of his head where Laf had smacked him. “It was an accident.”

Danny let out a chuckle, “It was pretty funny.”

Laf shook their head and used their other hand to smack the back of Danny’s head.

“Ow! Ok, really?” Danny shot them a look.

Laf shrugged and let out their own chuckle. Everyone had been on edge but apparently all it took was a couple smacks to the head to break the tension and the whole table started to laugh. They quickly launched back into regular conversation, talking about costumes, the party, and school, but Laura had tuned them out.

_**Laura (5:14pm):** Sorry about the coffee. You sure you’re alright? Do you need any help? _

_**Carm (5:16pm):** Wasn't you’re fault. I’m good, just need to change my pants. I’m pretty sure I can do that on my own but if you’re offering… _

_**Laura (5:17pm):** ha ha very funny. Thanks for saving my stuff, by the way. _

_**Carm (5:25pm):** Your notes are already barely readable without being covered in coffee. I did it for my own sake. _

_**Laura (5:26pm):** My hand writing isn't that bad! _

_**Carm (5:34pm):** It’s what I imagine monkey handwriting looks like. Its adorable, but illegible ;) _

_**Laura (5:36pm):** I think there was a compliment in there somewhere :) _

_**Laura (5:42pm):** Am I going to see you tomorrow? _

_**Carm (5:45pm):** Do you want to see me tomorrow? _

_L **aura (5:47pm):** (typing…) _

_**Laura (5:49pm):** (typing…) _

_**Laura (5:51pm):** Yes. _

_**Carm (5:51pm):** Then you’ll see me._

Laura’s face hurt from smiling so wide. She looked up and noticed Kirsch and Danny had already left and Laf was cleaning up around the shop that was nearly empty. It was just her and Perry at the table. How had she missed everyone getting up?

“Me and Lafontaine were going to go get some dinner, would you like to join us?” Perry smiled over at Laura.

“I think I’m just going to head home tonight” Laura replied, smile still spread across her face, “Thanks though.”

“You sure?” Laf walked back to the table and leaned on one of the chairs.

“Yeah I’m sure.” Laura’s smile faltered slightly as Laf started walking away, “Hey Laf?”

They turned around and lifted their eyebrows, “hmm?”

“Do you know if— Is Carmilla ok? She seemed a little off today and you’re her best friend, right? I thought maybe you’d know if something was up or if I was just being dumb.” Laura shrugged, feeling a little silly for asking.

“Umm..” Laf hesitated. They had noticed it too but hadn't even asked Carmilla if she was ok. Some best friend.

“Nevermind.” Laura shook her head to herself, “I’m just being silly. She did have a cup of coffee land in her lap so yeah, I’d be off too.” She stood up and grabbed her stuff off the table and put it in her bag, “Have fun tonight” she smiled at them both and headed for the door.

Laf walked over to the table and sat down. They let out a sigh and turned to face Perry.

Perry gave them a knowing look and rubbed their arm, “You should go check on her.” she gave them a smile.

“You’re pretty great, you know that?” Laf smiled back at her and leaned in to give her a kiss on the cheek.

“I know.” Perry smiled wide and giggled as Laf leaned in for another kiss.

——

“I know you’re in there! Come open the door!” Laf yelled standing in the hall outside Carmilla’s door. They heard footsteps and smiled to themselves.

The door swung open wide and Laf rolled their eyes. “Pants. People wear them.” They walked by Carmilla and set down a grocery bag on the counter.

Carmilla shut the door and followed Laf back to the kitchen, “Its my house so I can decide if pants are a thing or not. Right now. They are not a thing.” She sat down on one of the stools, “Why are you here?”

“Wow grumpy, nice to see you too.”

“Seriously.” She lifted an eyebrow, not amused with Laf’s attempt at humor to break the tension.

“Alright” They sighed, “Are you ok?”

She looked at them curiously, “where is this coming from? I thought we had a good rhythm down. I get pissed, you leave me alone, I get over it, you still leave me alone.”

“I was sent.” They shot her a look.

“By who?”

“Laura.” They sat down on a stool and opened up the grocery bag, pulling out 2 bottles of strawberry milk. “For some reason, despite you being you, she seems to really care about you.” They opened a bottle and slid it across the counter to Carmilla. “She said she thought something might be up, and I got the same feeling, so I came to make sure you were ok.”

Carmilla grabbed the bottle in front of her and took a big gulp.

Freshman year they had found a vending machine that sold strawberry milk for 25 cents and practically lived off of it. Ever since then it had been their go to for situations like this. Carmilla appreciated the gesture, but really didn't want to talk about what was bothering her.

“I’m fine, Laf. Just a lot going on.” She lifted the bottle to her lips for another sip. “I’ll try to be less of a dick, alright?”

Laf studied her for a second, not really believing her but knowing they probably shouldn't push it. “Fine. Just, come to the party tomorrow?”

“no way.” Carmilla shook her head with a frown.

“Come on, it’ll be good for you to get out, mingle with the humans, have some beers, see everyones stupid costumes. Plus, I know a certain tiny blonde would love to see you there.”

_They really should have led with that last one._

“I’ll think about it.” She rolled her eyes and took another drink.

“Great!” They clapped their hands together. “Lets put on some netflix!” They stood up and walked over to the couch, bringing their strawberry milk with them.

Carmilla started to follow them over slowly.

“Go put on some pants first.” Laf gave her a wide grin as they turned on the tv.

Carmilla paused and glared down at them for a minute before turning and walking into her room and yelling back at Laf, “Pants should not be a thing!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! And for all the awesome comments and notes I get on tumblr! I love hearing from you guys, it seriously makes my day!


	9. This is Halloween

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Halloween is here.  
> Lots of party, lots of dancing...

"Are you sure I look alright?" Laura was pulling on the hem of her shirt, standing in front of the full length mirror in her room. 

"Uhh, yeah. You're smokin hot L!" Betty pushed herself off the wall in the doorway and walked into Laura's room and dropped down on her bed. "If I was into girls, I'd totally be all over you right now."  She crossed her legs and leaned back on her hands, nodding in Laura's direction as she very obviously checked her out. 

"I'm being serious" she rolled her eyes and turned to face Betty, giving her a look of doubt. 

"I'm not lying!" Betty's eyes went wide and she lifted her hands in front of her.  

Laura turned back to the mirror and pulled down on her skirt, "It's not too short? I'm not going for the slutty vibe here."

"Not at all! In fact-" Betty stood and walked over to Laura, she reached out and undid the top couple buttons on her shirt and turned her back to face the mirror.  She fluffed up her hair a bit and smacked her ass, "perfect!"

Laura jumped forward a little with a laugh, "you are not helping!" She reached up to button her shirt back up. 

Betty smacked Laura’s hand, "leave it, I'm serious.  You're the hottest flight attendant I've ever seen." She gave her a wink in the mirror and walked back over to the bed and sat down again, "looking like that at the party tonight you could come home the president of the mile high club" she fell back onto her back laughing at her own joke. 

Laura rolled her eyes and looked at herself in the mirror again, "How many times do I have to tell you, I'm not a flight attendant."

She considered buttoning her shirt up again but decided against it. It was Halloween after all, and compared to what she imagined most of the other girls would be wearing, a couple buttons wasn't that crazy. 

"See you tonight?" She hit Betty's leg and grabbed her jacket from off the bed. 

Betty slowly sat up, "you know I never miss a party" she blew Laura a kiss and shooed her out the door. 

\----

"I think the correct term is flight attendant" LaF waddled around the counter, normal movement being constricted a bit by their costume. 

They had all decided to meet up at the coffee shop to check out each others costumes before going over to the party together. 

"Why can't we just say stewardess?" Danny put her hand on her hip, turning to look at Laura's costume once more. 

Laura dropped her hands to her sides and tilted her head back dramatically letting out a groan. "Guys. Enough. It doesn't even matter because I'm not either of those things!" She looked around the group, all eyes were on her.   She gestured her hands frantically to kirsch who was standing next to her, "our costumes go together, guys! How does this not make sense?" She threw her arms towards kirsch then gestured back to herself, trying to force them to get the connection. 

Kirsch lifted his hands and placed his fists on his sides, puffing out his chest. His collared shirt was undone half way with a tie hanging loose around his neck. Underneath it was a shirt with a giant Superman sign on it.  He even had his hair combed to the side and a pair of thick rimmed glasses on. 

"Well it's obvious he's Superman." Perry pointed at kirsch, "so you must be... A damsel in distress?" She said with a smile, pleased with her guess. 

Laura rolled her eyes and turned away from the group standing in he middle of the coffee shop.  It was perfect timing too, because as she faced the door she saw Carmilla walking down the sidewalk outside. 

Laura's jaw dropped open and her eyes grew wide at the sight.  "Wow."

Danny heard Laura and turned to see what had her attention, just as Carmilla walked into the shop.  Danny couldn't help it but her jaw dropped as well.  Right along with Kirsch's. 

Carmilla had on tight black leather pants and a black corset that exposed part of her stomach, and nearly all of her back. Her hair was in loose curls falling perfectly down over her exposed shoulders. Her makeup was darker than normal but not overwhelming, making her eyes even more intoxicating than usual. Her lips were red with lipstick and she had on a pair of high heels to match her lips.

Despite the cold and the fact it had been raining slightly on an off all day, she wasn't wearing a jacket so her shoulders, neck and collarbones were perfectly exposed creating an incredible contrast with her porcelain skin against the black of her outfit. To top it off her nose was painted black with whiskers and she had a pair of black cat ears secured neatly to her head. 

Laura was internally losing it.  She wasn't sure if her heart had stopped completely or if it was just beating so fast she couldn't feel it anymore.  She felt like someone had turned up the heat in the room to a thousand degrees and she was sure her lungs forgot how to function. She had to actively think about breathing for it to happen because, _holy shit._  

The best part was Carmilla was paying attention to her phone when she came in and didn't notice the entire group gawking at her. 

"Oh. My. God." LaF finally broke the silence.

Carmilla looked up from her phone and immediately saw Laura's face. Her jaw still dropped and face definitely flushed. She gave her a flirty smile and cocked an eyebrow at her before looking around at the rest of the group. 

Kirsch had the goofiest grin on his face Carmilla had ever seen and even Danny looked a little flustered.  Angry. But flustered.  

"You're Cat-milla!" LaF smiled wide, apparently amused by the cat ears. 

Carmilla rolled her eyes, "don't start" she said dryly giving LaF a look. 

"You are one fine feline!" Kirsch's smile got impossibly bigger.  

"Kirsch is right, you look claw-some" LaF let out a chuckle. 

Carmilla shook her head "Ok, let it all out. Let's just get this over with." She put a hand on her hip and tilted her head a bit. 

"Woah, no need for such 'cat-itude'" LaF was loving this. 

The rest of the group caught on to what was happening and joined in. 

"I hope this party isn't a cat-astophy" 

Carmilla had expected better than that from the ginger giant. 

"I think she looks paws-itively radiant" even perry contributed. 

"Seriously, you look great. I’m being fur-real” Laf was never going to stop loving it.

“You look hiss-terical” Danny redeemed herself with that one.

They all continued trying to out do each other.  Carmilla just stood there, hands on hips, taking it like a champ, until she realized Laura hadn't been playing along with their little game.  She glanced over at her and made eye contact.  Laura had somewhat composed herself but was still just standing there staring at Carmilla.  

She couldn't believe how gorgeous she was.  I mean, she could believe it, she thought it every time she saw her but wow.   _Wow_.  Laura was pretty sure that was the only word left in her vocabulary because that's all she could think while looking at Carmilla. 

Carmilla had stopped listening to the list of puns and was now just focused on Laura. She looked amazing. _Different._  I mean it was a costume, but still amazing. 

She gave Laura a wink and whispered just loud enough for only her to hear, “Cat got your tongue?”

Laura gave Carmilla a shy smile, very aware of the heat coming from her cheeks, "alright guys, that's enough"

Everyone's laughter from the pun war started to die down a bit after her comment. 

Carmilla gave her a thankful look for ending the game.  Laura's smile turned mischievous, and Carmilla raised an eyebrow in anticipation for whatever was about to happen next. 

"I think she looks purrrr-fect" Laura grinned from ear to ear and the group erupted in laughter. 

Carmilla bit her lip trying to hide a smile.  She shook her head and stepped forward towards Laura, "very funny Lois Lane"

Laura's smirk disappeared and her eyes went wide, she threw her arms out, "See?! Carm got it in like 2 seconds!" She gestured to kirsch and back to herself, "superman, Lois Lane!"

Her outburst over her costume only made everyone laugh even harder. 

Carmilla gave her a small smile and turned to LaF and Perry, "what exactly is happening here?" She pointed in their direction, looking their costumes over confusedly. 

LaF chuckled, "well, when Perry suggested we go as Salt and Pepper I didn't realize how deep she was into the hip hop/rap scene." They looked down at their costume, dressed as a pepper shaker then over to Perry, dressed like one of the members of the hip hop group. 

Perry shrugged her shoulders and gave them an innocent smile. 

Danny laughed and looked over the couple, "you guys look ridiculous" 

Carmilla crossed her arms and gave Danny a once over, "you're one to talk Xena."

Danny shot her a glare in return and was about to say something when Kirsch cut her off. 

"Xena? She's obviously Katniss." He looked at Carmilla confused, "haven't you seen the movie?"

Both Danny and Carmilla rolled their eyes. 

Laura laughed and patted Kirsch's arm as she turned to Carmilla, "does this mean you're coming to the party?" She knew she was technically Kirsch's date, and that Danny wasn't happy about that already, so she tried to seem casual about the question to avoid any further drama. 

"Is that what you all are standing here for?" Carmilla was playing dumb. The only reason she had stopped at the coffee shop is because she knew they were all meeting before the party. 

"Isn't that why you're dressed like a cat?" Laura asked curiously.  

Carmilla shrugged, "it was required for work." _It wasn't._  

Laura looked amused as she turned to LaF, "you made everyone dress up today?"

LaF was completely confused by the question but Carmilla knew Laura still thought she worked at the coffee shop so she cut in before LaF had a chance to say anything.

"Why don't we just get this freak show on the road?" She walked back to the door and opened it and gestured for everyone to exit. 

They all shuffled out, LaF locked the door and they all made their way towards the summer society house.  The group walked together, Carmilla lagging a little behind as they went. They were nearly there when Laura slowed her pace so she could walk with Carmilla. She waited until Carmilla fell into place at her side and matched her pace.  

"You really do look amazing.  I mean, wow." She glanced shyly over at Carmilla. 

Carmilla looked over at Laura seductively and gave her a smile, "right back at you, cream puff.”

Laura giggled and ducked her head down to hide her blush. She glanced down at Carmilla’s hand that was extremely close to hers and slowly linked their pinkies together while letting out a breath slowly, trying to calm her nerves. 

They walked a little ways, pinkies connected, sharing glances until Kirsch yelled from the front of the group, "where's my sexy reporter?!"

Laura jumped and let go of Carmilla’s pinky at the sudden interruption. She looked forward to the rest of the group as Kirsch bounced back placing himself between the two girls. 

"Alright, enough seduction eyes, I need my super hot date on my super hot arm when we walk in to this party!" He offered Laura his arm and smiled wide as she took hold of it. 

Danny stopped walking abruptly, "Seduction eyes? What?!” 

LaF was following close behind her and ran directly into her as she turned around slightly panicked at Kirsch's comment. 

LaF tried to regain their balance but their costume made it extremely difficult and they toppled over onto their side on the ground. "Uh, a little help?"  

Carmilla stepped up next to them and leaned down, placing her hands on her knees, getting close to LaF as they rolled on the ground.

"This is payback for the cat puns." She stood up and stuck her tongue out at LaF still on the ground, "who's laughing _meow_?"she gave them a big grin and walked away laughing.  

LaF rolled over and called after her, "You've got to be kitten me!”

——

The Summer Society house looked insane. Picture the coolest haunted house you’ve ever seen and then picture it being cooler. The lawn was decked out in decorations making it look like an old cemetery. There was fog coming from the front door coupled with a strobe light flashing at you as soon as you walked in. Strings hanging from the ceiling made you feel like you were walking through spiderwebs as you made your way down the hall. Creepy music played through the house giving it an eery feeling as the dark sheets hanging in the hallways led you through the dark house with Zetas and SS sisters jumping out randomly to scare you dressed up in costumes. It was awesome.

Once you made it through the house, you were led to the back patio of the house. Luckily it was a covered patio because the weather wasn't exactly cooperating. It had been raining on and off all day. The back patio is where the party was. They had a DJ, an entire area dedicated to housing the alcohol, beer pong tables set up, couches and chairs lining the edges. There were lights hung, carved pumpkins lit, tons of decorations and everyone was in costume dancing and drinking. It was definitely going to be a party to remember.

The group made their way through the house, Perry covering her eyes the entire time, letting Lafontaine lead her through. Danny and Kirsch would shove each other every time they got scared. Laura giggled nervously the entire time. It was adorable. Carmilla, walked casually through the whole thing, she actually looked bored.

They made it out to the patio and everyone quickly joined the party that was already going full speed. Kirsch grabbed everyone drinks and pulled everyone out to dance. Carmilla opted to make her own drink, probably a good thing because the one kirsch had made was awful, and found an empty couch to take over.

The music was thumping loudly and the patio was starting to get more crowded with people as the night went on. Carmilla hadn't moved from her spot on the couch and it turned out to be the perfect spot to watch everything that was going on around her.

Kirsch was probably the worst date in the world, often leaving Laura to dance with some other girl or get someone else a drink or talk with one of his bros. Laura didn't seem to mind though, she looked like she was having a great time dancing with Laf, Perry and pretty much the rest of the student body.

Carmilla was watching Laura out on the dance floor and it seemed like the only dance moves she knew are those similar to the shopping cart, the sprinkler and what appears to be an attempt at the single ladies dance. But she cant help but smile because she has the biggest grin on her face and she cant stop laughing. _God she's beautiful_. She was dancing and laughing hard and everyone around her couldn't help but have a good time too. Its amazing how she did that.

Carmilla just watched as she threw her hair over her shoulder and playfully tried to get Perry to loosen up a bit. Suddenly she was singing along to the song playing and turned to look at Carmilla. Laura kept mouthing the words to the song in Carmilla’s direction, moving her hands animatedly along with the lyrics while still dancing. Carmilla laughed and couldn't take her eyes off of her.

Suddenly the couch sunk a bit and someone was sitting close to Carmilla. A little too close. She looked over and was face to face with Natalie, the girl from the Diner.

“Natalie.” Carmilla said a little shocked as seeing her.

“Hey you” Natalie leaned into Carmilla’s shoulder and placed her hand on her thigh.

Carmilla looked up and saw that Laura was still watching her. Her smile wasn't as wide as it was a minute ago.

She shifted away from Natalie as best she could and moved her leg trying to get the girl to move her hand.

“Having a good night?” Carmilla asked, looking around trying to find an escape route.

“The goodest time ever!” Natalie slurred excitedly.

“Oh boy. You’ve had a few drinks then, haven’t you?” Carmilla laughed. This was going to make things easier. If she's lucky, Natalie wont even remember this so it wont matter what she does to get out of the situation.

Natalie leaned in close again in a poor attempt to kiss Carmilla. Carmilla being sober, ducked out of the way in time and Natalie ended up kissing the back of the couch. Carmilla glanced back up at Laura and saw her frown before looking back to Perry and Laf. Carmilla pushed Natalie out of the way enough so she could stand up and made her way over to Laura.

Laura watched Carmilla walking across the patio to her and her chest tightened. She looked amazing. Laura noticed she had gotten rid of the whiskers and cat nose at some point, but she had practically be staring at her all night still. She was mostly refusing to participate in the party but suddenly she was walking right to her.

The bass started thumping out a hard slow beat as soon as Carmilla got to Laura. She stopped in front of her and held out her hand, giving her a crooked smile. Her eyes were dark and full of something. Laura wasn't sure what it was, but it was made her heart rate double just looking at her. She slowly reached out her hand and let Carmilla pull her further into the crowd. They were nearly in the middle of the patio when Carmilla turned around to face Laura and pulled her close, keeping a hold on her hand.

The crowded patio had them standing pretty close together and Laura’s whole body felt like it was on fire as Carmilla reached out her free hand and put it on her hip. Carmilla let go with her other hand and used it to bring Laura’s hand up to her shoulder. Laura licked her lips and glanced down to Carmilla’s just as she bit her bottom lip and tugged Laura a little closer.

Laura’s breath hitched as their hips met gently. Carmilla had her hands on Laura’s sides and started guiding their movements to match the beat, swaying side to side. Their bodies pressed together Camilla moved her hips slowly, pressing on Laura’s with her hands to help her follow her movements. She slid one of her hands off Laura’s hip and placed it on the small of her back, holding their bodies tight together as they moved to the beat. Laura’s heart was pounding and she’s pretty sure if Carmilla wasn't holding onto her, she would be flat on the floor. She tilted her head down to watch their movements, she was sure if she looked Carmilla in the eye she would lose it completely. She glanced from Carmilla’s body up to her lips. They were parted slightly and suddenly were turning up into a smile.

“You know its rude to stare, cupcake.” Carmilla’s smile widened, seeing how flustered Laura was.

Laura knew her face was bright red, she quickly looked up at Carmilla embarrassed, “I wasn't- I just-“ she shook her head, “shut up” and let out a laugh.

Carmilla looked at her with a seductive smile and turned Laura around so they were facing the same direction. Carmilla wrapped an arm around her waist and pressed her body against Laura’s back. Laura tried to swallow down the knot in her throat as Carmilla lifted the hand not pressed against her stomach and and moved some hair away from her neck. She leaned in close and Laura shivered at the feeling of her warm breath hitting her neck as she whispered, “You’re pretty good with your hips.”

Laura let out a nervous laugh and took a deep breathe.  She's sure she was trying to say something but things just weren't functioning at the moment and nothing was coming out of her mouth. Her eyes fluttered shut and she gripped onto Carmilla’s free hand trying to pull her closer. She's pretty sure her knees are going to give way any second with how her body is reacting to what Carmilla is doing with her hips. Laura can feel Carmilla grinding against her slowly and its driving her crazy.

Suddenly something snaps and Laura is no longer following the lead. She turned around to face Carmilla and wrapped both arms around her neck, pulling her in close. Their faces are inches away and Carmilla took in a ragged breathe. She was so used to being in charge, having Laura suddenly in control made her stomach tug and her head spin.

Carmilla wrapped both hands around Laura and let them drag down her back until they are holding firm on her waist. Laura pulled her in tighter, bringing the front of their bodies together and their faces even closer. Carmilla’s heart pounded and she was pretty sure she was having a heart attack when Laura started rolling her hips tight against her. Laura licked her lips and kept her eyes locked on Carmilla’s.

The tension between them was nearly unbearable as they moved their hips together to the heavy beat, eyes locked on one another. Carmilla glanced down to Laura’s lips and licked her own. She pulled Laura in tighter, it was like no matter how close they got to one another, it wouldn't be close enough. Both girls were breathing heavily, Carmilla’s heart beat was erratic and she kept having to remind herself to breathe. Suddenly Laura shifted their movements into one that made Carmilla feel the pull even closer to her core.

_Fuck_.

Carmilla let out a shaky breath at the coy smile Laura had on her face. She couldn't avoid it any more. In this moment she didn't care what was keeping her from making a move before. Laura was quite literally in her arms, gripping onto her tightly, making everything inside her body ache just to be with her. All she wanted to do was lean forward and kiss her. _Just kiss her_.

The song blaring through the speakers changed quickly and the crowd started jumping around haphazardly. Someone knocked into Laura hard, pulling her out of Carmilla’s arms.

_Fuck. Why did this keep happening?!_

Laura tried to reach out to hang on to Carmilla but she was already being pulled into the crowd.

Carmilla watched as Laura was pulled away in the madness of the party. She stood there for a minute just trying to catch her breathe again. She was all over the place. Her body, her heart, hear brain were all screaming at her. When her heart rate calmed down a bit and she was pretty sure she could make it off the patio without falling over she made her way over to the door that led inside. She needed a break. And quite possibly a room to herself for a moment with the way Laura had been moving her body against her.

She found her way to the bathroom but the door was locked. She leaned up against the wall waiting for whoever was in there to finish. A minute later Laura came around the corner, almost running into her.

Laura let out a laugh, “Sorry! I was just looking for the bathroom.”

Carmilla nodded, suddenly her heart was pounding again like she was running a marathon. “Same.” She gave her a smile.

_What the hell? A second ago you were grinding up against this girl and now you cant even speak to her without sounding like an idiot._

Suddenly the door swung open and out stumbled Will, the guy Laura had seen Kirsch wrestling with the day before. She was about to say hi when she noticed Carmilla go stiff and clench her fists.

“Kitty!” Will gave her a cocky smile, “Funny seeing you here!”

“William.”

The Carmilla standing with her now was not the same one she had been dancing with a few minutes ago. She was cold and guarded, her voice angry. Laura wasn't sure what was going on but she knew it wasn't good.

“And who’s this delicious little treat?” He took a step towards Laura, eyeing her like she was a meal to be eaten.

Carmilla stepped in front of Laura, separating the two of them but didn't say anything.

Will let out a laugh he shook his head at Carmilla as someone else came stumbling out the bathroom.

“SJ?” Laura was looking around Carmilla’s shoulder and immediately recognized the girl as Kirsch’s ex girlfriend.

SJ smiled and attempted to tame her hair. They obviously weren't using the bathroom for its intended purpose. She stumbled over to will and kissed him on the cheek before waving her fingers at Laura and Carmilla and stumbling away.

“I see you havent changed” Carmilla scoffed, crossing her arms over her chest while she stared at Will. “Going after other peoples’s girlfriends still, huh?”

Will laughed humorlessly, “deja vu kitty? Don’t be angry just because Ell chose me over you.”

Carmilla’s eyes narrowed and she clenched her jaw. Laura could see her whole body had tensed. Laura reached forward and took hold of Carmilla’s arm, mostly to let her know she was right there, not knowing what else she could do. She wasn't even sure what was happening.

“Hey bro! Where’ve you been?” Kirsch pushed his way between carmilla and Will and gave Will a chest bump before putting his arm around his shoulder and turning to face the girls. “I see you’ve met Carmsexy and nerd hottie” Kirsch grinned at them both.

“Oh me and Carmilla go way back, bro.” Will gave Carmilla a sickening grin.

Kirsch patted Wills shoulder, “This guy right here is the best bro of them all. He’s been helping me get over the whole SJ thing, out of the bro-ness of his heart” Kirsch was clearly drunk. But he was always slightly delusional so his actions kind of felt normal still.

Carmilla shook her head, still glaring at Will, “I think you might need to rethink your bro choices, beefcake” she looked to Kirsch for a second then turned and to walk back outside.

“What was that all about?” Kirsch asked looking at Will.

Will shrugged and gave Laura a smug smile, “No clue bro. Lets go get another drink” Then he pushed Kirsch out the door, back into the party.

Laura couldn't believe what just happened. She didn't understand half of it, but the half she did catch, she just couldn't get over. Will, Kirsch’s ‘bro’, was the one that SJ dumped him for, and he had no idea. And Will was a complete dick. And there was something weird between him and Carmilla. _Carmilla._ Laura quickly turned around and went back into the crowd of people to try to find Carmilla.

——

“Have you tried this punch?” Laf twisted their face in disgust, “I think its mostly jet fuel”

Perry smiled warmly at them and offered them her cup, it had some orange soda in it.

“Have you guys seen Laura?” Danny asked, scanning the crowd of people packed on the back patio.

“From down here?” Laf snorted out a laugh. Ok, it was time for them to stop drinking. They cleared their throat, “I mean, no. Not since she was dancing with Carmilla a while ago.”

“With Carmilla?” Danny stopped scanning the crowd and turned to laf with a concerned face. “I thought mistress of snark was camped out in the corner brooding?”

Laf shrugged, “She was for a while. I don't know, I haven’t really been keeping track.” They glanced over at perry who was sipping her orange soda with a smile, bouncing happily to the beat of the music.

Danny turned back to the crowd, a frown on her face. She spotted Kirsch and made a bee line through the crowd to him.

“Kirsch!”

“Whats up sexy psycho? psycho psycho. Summer school!” Kirsch grinned, clearly proud of himself for making his way through that jumble of a thought process.

Danny sighed, “How much have you had to drink? You were only supposed to have a couple drinks so you could help me keep this party under control, remember?”

“I membered!” He wobbled a little bit and reached out to grab Danny’s arm to steady himself. “I just-“ His face went from a goofy grin to a sad expression, “She dumped me.”

Danny grabbed onto him with both hands as he started to slouch and drop slightly to the ground. “Alright jock strap” she threw his arm over her shoulder and propped him up and started walking him inside the house, “I think its time for you to take a nap”  
This is not how she saw this night going.

Perry looked over and saw Lafontaine watching her as she bounced along to the song. “Everything ok sweetie?”

Laf gave her a big smile, “Why don't we head out? I think I’ve had enough party for one night.” They reached out and took hold of Perry’s hand and led her down the patio steps and around to the front of the house to leave.

 

 

——

“There you are” Laura walked up the few steps into the Gazebo that was a little ways away from the main house.

The Summer Society house was actually pretty amazing. Besides being a giant victorian style house with a huge deck on both the main and second floor that wrapped completely around the house, there was a pond that sat a little ways back behind it. It was surrounded by a big grass yard and a few giants trees that had probably been there for hundreds of years. Next to the pond sat a good sized Gazebo, far enough from the house that the noise from the party wasn't too loud, but close enough that it was easy to get to without too much of a walk.

Carmilla was leaning on one of the large pillars, looking out over the pond. She heard Laura’s voice and turned her head to look at her and gave her a small smile.

Laura walked up next to her and leaned on the railing, “Having fun?” she asked casually, watching the water.

Carmilla kept her eyes on Laura, studying her for a moment before turning back to look at the pond, “Loads.”

Laura let out a small laugh, “Clearly” her tone was sarcastic but playful. She turned and leaned her hip against the rail so she was facing Carmilla.

“Drink?” Carmilla held out her cup a bit towards Laura.

Laura shook her head, “After my last party I learned my lesson and have a strict 1 drink rule.”

Carmilla smiled at her like she wanted to hear the story behind her statement, before shaking her cup gently in her hand “Its water.”

“Oh.” Laura eyebrows came together in surprise as she reached out for the cup and took a sip. “Can I ask you something?” She handed her back the cup.

Carmilla kept her eyes on Laura “hmm?”

Laura watched her for a second, considering her next move. Carmilla sensed her hesitation and nervously looked back to the water. Laura felt that feeling that something was off again. Like there was something Carmilla wasn't saying. “Why did you come tonight?” Laura finally asked quietly, keeping her eyes locked on Carmilla.

“Isn’t it obvious?” She looked back at Laura, “The beer and beautiful women.” she winked and looked at the pond again. “Who knew me and the puppy dog had so much in common, right?”

There is was again. She felt it when she made the comment about Kirsch. Something was up, Laura just knew it. She narrowed her eyes at Carmilla, “I don’t believe you.”

Carmilla laughed, “oh no? why is that?” she turned so her back was against the pillar and she was facing Laura.

“Well first of all, I just drank what you were drinking and its water. not beer.” She smiled playfully at the brunette, "and second, all the beautiful girls are at the party, and you’re all the way over here.”

Carmilla’s eyes watched Laura intently, “not all the beautiful girls are over there.”

Lauras playful smile slowly disappeared at Carmilla's comment.  The tension in the air was heavy again. Laura had expected a sarcastic answer but the way Carmillas voice sounded, it was completely void of irony.  She was looking at Laura in a different way than she had before and it made Laura excited and nervous at the same time.

She pushed herself off the pillar and stepped towards Laura “Actually, from where I’m standing, the most beautiful girl at the party, isn't even at the party.” Her voice was low and seductive.

Laura’s mouth went dry as she took in a ragged breathe. Her body felt like it was cemented in place, she couldn't even think of something to say et alone actually speak. She giggled nervously and took Carmilla’s cup from her hand and gulped down the rest of the water.  

Carmilla couldn't help but smile. _This girl was something else_. “Want to go for a walk?” She had had enough of the party already. She really only came to be with Laura and if she could do that without a couple hundred other people around, that sounded better to her than staying here any longer.

“That sounds perfect.” Laura smiled at her and they walked down the steps and started walking across the damp grass together.


	10. Rain Storms

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I guess you guys have waited long enough...
> 
> I think you know whats coming.
> 
> they go for a "walk"

They had made their way quite a ways from the party happening and could only faintly hear the music still pumping as they walked towards campus.  They hadn't said much on their walk so far. They had mostly just been enjoying each others company and the sounds around them. It had started sprinkling but not enough to make it uncomfortable yet.  Carmilla had her eyes on the sidewalk when Laura finally broke the silence. 

"Why did you really come tonight?"

Carmilla kept her eyes on the ground but smiled slightly. She didn't say anything for a minute then looked over at Laura walking beside her.  She reached over and took hold of one of Laura's hands.  She slowly laced their fingers together and lifted it up and took hold of it with both of her hands.  She opened her fingers and held Laura's hand with her palm facing up and started tracing the lines across her palm. 

"LaF asked me to." _Half true_. 

"Is that the only reason?" Laura was watching Carmilla's finger trace the lines of her palm. Despite the cold and the fact that she still didn't have a jacket, Carmilla’s hands were warm. 

The finger tracing lines on Laura's hand stilled and Carmilla stopped walking. 

"No." She said hesitantly as she lifted her eyes to look at Laura. 

Laura studied her for a minute. "Why did you offer to help me with my class?"

"Full of questions tonight aren't we?" Carmilla dropped Laura's hand gently and started walking again. Laura didn't move. 

"I'm serious." Her face looked genuinely curious but also like she wasn't going to back down from the conversation. 

Carmilla stopped walking and blew out a breathe, watching it turn into a cloud in front of her. It was definitely getting colder.  She turned around but didn't make an attempt to get closer to Laura. Her heart was pounding against her chest and she knew if she said anything there would be no taking it back. This wasn't a game, it never had been. Laura had the ability to crush her heart and she didn't even realize it. 

Carmilla didn't say anything, she just stood there looking at Laura. Her eyes looked worried, but gentle. Her hands were shaking and Laura wasn't sure if it was because of the cold or something else. 

"Why are you so nice to me?" Laura asked quietly. She felt how heavy the tension was between them.  Her heart beat was picking up and it was impossible to break eye contact. 

Carmilla swallowed hard and licked her lips. "Because you're the most beautiful person I've ever met" it barely came out as a whisper.

Laura wasn't sure she heard her so she took a step forward, her eyebrows pushed together.

Carmilla felt the weight of her answer, even if Laura hadn't heard it, it didn't even begin to explain why Carmilla had done what she had. She cleared her throat as Laura stepped closer, "you just- I didn't like how sad you were and I just, I wanted to help, I guess."

They were still a few feet away and Laura stopped approaching her, a thoughtful look on her face. 

It was starting to actually rain and neither of them were dressed for it.  Carmilla looked around to see if she could find a place for them to get out of the rain. She knew the coffee shop wasn't too far away, definitely closer than the summer society house, so that was probably their safest bet. 

"We should go before the rain gets worse.” Carmilla had a pleading look on her face. Whether it was for them to get out of the rain or because of the conversation happening, even she wasn't sure. 

Laura didn't move, ignoring her plea to get out of the rain that was starting to fall harder, “wanted to help me? You didn't even know me, though." She shook her head gently like she was trying to get the pieces to fall into place so she could understand. 

Carmilla reached forward and grabbed her hand and have it a gentle pull, “Please? Lets just go.” She said it quietly, her face still pleading with her to listen. 

Laura kept hold of Carmilla’s hand but didn't move, "you didn't even know me" she whispered, looking into Carmilla’s eyes.

Carmilla sighed, she knew she wasn't going to let this go. But she was terrified to give her an answer.  She reached forward with her other hand and took hold of Laura's and stepped close. There was only inches between them, they were pretty much drenched by now, both shivering from the cold but neither really paying attention to it. The air between them was heavy as they looked at each other. 

Carmilla let out a breath and smiled, all inhibitions set aside. It was loving and honest, it was like she was finally letting go and letting the walls she had built come tumbling down.

"I would lose time thinking about you, before I even knew your name."

Laura took in a sharp breathe. That wasn't what she was expecting to hear. 

Before she knew it Carmilla had let go of her hands and reached up and cupped her face.  She waited just a second, watching her eyes for a reaction, a sign to stop, something.. But Laura's eyes were saying nothing but yes.  She leaned in and connected their lips. 

Carmilla had wanted to do this from the second she had seen Laura and now it was happening.  Her lips were soft, and immediately kissed her back.  Laura's hands came up and grabbed on to Carmilla, pulling her in closer, their bodies pressing against each other.  Their kiss deepened, full of want, but something else too.

Carmilla let her hand slide back behind Laura’s head, tangling her fingers in her wet hair. Laura let out a moan, kissing her harder. Kissing her like she was drowning and Carmilla was the air. She captured Carmilla’s bottom lip and Carmilla hummed into her mouth. Slightly embarrassed by her reaction to Laura kissing her, Carmilla couldn't help but smile against her mouth. Laura feeling proud of herself smiled back until they’re both smiling, ruining the kiss. _Probably the best kiss that has happened in the history of kissing_.

Laura pulled back slightly and giggled and bite her bottom lip. _Holy cow that was amazing_.

Carmilla just leaned her head forward and placed her forehead against Laura’s, still smiling wide. Her hand was still cupping Laura’s face and she brushed a thumb across her cheek. She leaned in and gave her another quick kiss, sighing into it. She pulled away, keeping their faces close, “Can we please get out of the rain now?” She said it with a smile. _She’s pretty sure she’s going to be smiling for days after that kiss._

Laura giggled again, her cheeks heating up despite the fact that she was drenched form the rain and freezing. She nodded her head quickly. Carmilla reached down and took hold of her hand and started pulling her in the direction of the coffee shop. They made it a few steps before Carmilla stopped and reached down to take her heels off, Laura doing the same. They ran across campus holding their shoes in one hand, Their fingers laced with the other, laughing and dodging puddles with their bare feet.  

——

A flash of lightning ripped through the sky and immediately was followed by a loud crack of thunder. The girls jumped up the step to stand under the awning covering the doorway to the coffee shop.  

Carmilla tugged on the handle but it was locked. She turned around to see a shivering Laura, her arms crossed over her chest hugging herself tightly.   Her tight pencil skirt and blazer were soaked.  The button up shirt she had in underneath the blazer was wet as well, the fabric clinging tightly  to her body. Her hair was drenched and a mess from running.  She should have been miserable, but she hadn't stopped smiling since the kiss. 

Carmilla reached out and pushed some wet strands of hair from Laura's face, tucking them behind her ear. She looked around quickly, _they had to get out of the rain and cold_. She spotted the window just a few feet from the door and had an idea.  She reached down and took hold of Laura's hand and pulled her quickly down the steps and over underneath the window. 

"What are we doing?" Laura spoke through chattering teeth, her whole body shivering. 

Carmilla grabbed a small stick and rock from off the ground and started shimmying the stick into the crack around the window, "We are getting inside." She hit the rock against the back of the stick and wiggled it around gently. 

"Do you not have a key?" Carmilla ignored her so she glanced around just to make sure they wouldn't be caught, "Why do I get the feeling this isn't your first time breaking and entering?" Laura said with a smirk.

Carmilla stopped messing with the stick and turned to look at Laura, "maybe because it isn’t."She gave her a wink and turned back to the task of opening the window. 

A few more taps from the rock and there was a 'click' and the window cracked open. Carmilla turned to Laura and gave her a smug smile and pulled the window open towards them. She grabbed Laura's shoes from her hand and threw them and her own through the window onto the coffee shop floor. 

The window was just high enough, and they were just short enough, that they were going to have to hop up to get inside.  Laura put her hands on her hips and looked herself up and down before giving Carmilla a look of doubt. "I could barely run in this outfit and now you want me to scale a building?"

Carmilla let out a chuckle and put her hands on the ledge and pushed herself up. She swung around and sat on the ledge facing Laura. She reached out her hand, offering to help Laura up.

She wasn't sure this was possible but she was freezing and figured it would be worth a try.  With Carmilla sitting on the ledge above her she put her hands on the ledge and hopped up.  Carmilla grabbed her waist and helped pull her into the window next to her.  Having made it on the first try Laura let out an excited giggle and leaned into Carmilla, forgetting they were both carefully balancing on the window ledge.  

Carmilla’s eyes went wide as soon as Laura leaned on her and they both started falling backwards into the coffee shop. She shot her arms out trying to grab the window frame but it was too late so she brought her arms quickly around Laura, pulling her into her chest. They came crashing down, Carmilla on her back and Laura landing right on top of her. 

Carmilla landed hard, her head echoing a hard "THWAK" against the hardwood floor. Immediately her vision went spotty and the pain made her clench her eyes closed. Her arms were wrapped around Laura tightly still, if there was a chance at keeping anyone from getting hurt in this moment, she was going to protect Laura as best she could.  She felt Laura's shoulder hit her square in the chest, knocking the air out of her lungs. 

Carmilla sucked in a desperate breathe for air, her skull was pounding, she felt light headed and like everything was spinning. It took her a minute to force herself to try and open her eyes again.  She was still seeing spots and everything was blurry and spinning but she could make out the faint outline of someone hovering over her.  

Her eyes started to adjust as she blinked away the spots seeming to be floating around her.  Things were starting to take their normal shapes, even if they were still spinning, and the outline above her finally was clear enough for her to realize it was Laura. Her eyebrows were pushed together looking concerned, and her lips were moving.

Carmilla blinked hard a couple times, trying to make her eyes focus on Laura’s lips. She was talking but Carmilla couldn't make out what the words were. She could hear it faintly, but it was like someone was trying to talk to her underwater. Her eyes were finally working right, the floating spots had disappeared but her head was still pounding.

“Laura” Her voice was came out a quiet but rough whisper.

Laura kept talking, but it was still just muffled noise to Carmilla. She watched Laura’s lips closely and finally figured it out- ‘Carm, can you hear me?’ ‘are you ok?’ ‘say something’.

“Laura” She spoke a little louder and Laura stopped talking and just looked at her. “Your hands are covering my ears.” She smiled up at the girl hovering over her.

Laura’s eyes went wide as she realized she had been covering Carmilla’s ears with her hands. She heard her head hit the floor and panicked. She was practically laying on top of her, having fallen from the window clumsily, but she had shifted enough so her hips were lined up with Carmilla's. Her skirt had made it difficult to really move so one of her knees was between Carmilla’s legs and the other just on the outside of her body. She had grabbed her head to check for injuries and just hadn't let go.

She dropped her hands from Carmilla’s ears and placed them on the ground on either side of her head, letting her face hover right above Carmilla’s.

Carmilla’s head was pounding loudly inside her skull and now her heart decided to match enthusiasm as it picked up its pace at the sight of Laura hovering above her. She tried to lift her head and quickly found that was a bad idea as everything started to spin again. Her eyes closed in an effort to let everything settle and she took in a deep breath.

“Are you ok?” Laura whispered.

Their faces were extremely close and carmilla could feel water dripping from Laura’s hair onto her face and body.

“no” Carmilla grunted, her face scrunching up in pain. She knew it would be a bad idea to shake her head and she wasn't sure she should open her eyes yet either.

Laura smiled at how adorable Carmilla was when she pouted. “Where does it hurt?” She asked with a flirty tone.

Carmilla noticed immediately and opened one eye to look at Laura and was met with a flirty smirk. Carmilla pouted even more, “my head”

Laura smiled and leaned down and placed a gentle kiss on the top of Carmilla’s head, one on her temple and another on her forehead. “Anywhere else?”

Carmilla closed her eyes again, yeah Laura was being adorable but that didn't change the fact that her head was still about to explode.

“my shoulder.”

Laura shifted lower and placed a lingering kiss on her shoulder, then left a line of kisses along her collar bone.

Carmilla shifted her head slightly, exposing more of her neck on the side Laura was kissing.

“How about now?” Laura asked, raising an eyebrow suggestively as she watched Carmilla through her eyelashes, looking up at her from her position near her collarbone where she had left the last kiss.

Carmilla smiled and opened her eyes to look at Laura, “I think I bit my lip.” She tried to pout, but she couldn't stop smiling to make it work.

“is that so?” Laura let out a small laugh and brought herself up so her face was hovering above carmilla’s again.

 _Fuck a headache_. Carmilla nodded, “yeah, its pretty bad too. It might need a little extra attention.”

Laura slowly lowered her head closer to Carmilla, inching their lips closer together. Carmilla’s eyes were locked on Laura’s lips and Laura was watching Carmilla’s eyes intently. She was almost there, their lips almost touching when Laura stopped moving.

“I think you’re fine.” She giggled and leaned down to give Carmilla a quick peck on the lips.

Carmilla had other plans. As soon as Laura tried to pull back from the short kiss, Carmilla reached up and took hold of the front of Laura’s shirt and pulled her back down. She pulled her hard enough that Laura dropped from her hands down to her elbows, leaning on her forearms. She let her body lay flat on top of Carmilla’s, and everything felt like it was coming alive at the feel of their bodies pressed together.

Carmilla moved her hands and let them slide down Laura’s sides, scratch up the length of her back and back down to hug around her waist tightly. Laura let herself melt into Carmilla’s touch, losing herself in the moment. She grazed her tongue against Carmilla’s and felt Carmilla’s grip around her tighten. She moved her leg to get shift her weight and suddenly Carmilla stopped kissing her and let out a moan. Laura realized her knee was still between Carmilla’s legs and her thigh was pushing into her. She went to move it but Carmilla quickly puller her back into a kiss and pulled her closer.

 _oh my gosh, yes._  She shifted again slowly and Carmilla moaned again. Not as deep this time but it made her kiss Laura harder and her hips rocked into Laura’s. Laura forgot how cold she was as her whole body began to heat up from the way Carmilla was touching her.

Laura pulled away from Carmilla’s lips and kissed along her jaw to her ear. She bit her ear lobe gently then whispered, “Feeling better?” she continued to rock her hips against the brunette underneath her, feeling her chest rise and fall rapidly.

Carmilla’s head was spinning. She wasn't sure if it was from landing on it or from Laura being on top of her. She couldn't even decide if it was painful or euphoric. She let out a shaky breath as Laura started kissing her neck, "maybe we should.." 

Laura sucked hard just over her collar bone, distracting Carmilla from her train of thought.  

She swallowed hard trying to compose herself, "relocate. We should relocate" it came out in heavy breaths as Laura rolled her hips into her again. 

Laura pulled back and looked around them. There were plenty of couches around them, and yeah the floor wasn't very comfortable. Plus they were next to the open window with cold air blowing in.  She pushed herself up, kneeling over Carmilla and stuck her hand out to help pull her up. 

Carmilla took in a deep breath and took hold of Laura's hand. As she was being pulled up her head started getting foggy and heavy again, the lightheaded feeling was taking over and she slowly laid herself back down on her back, “okay, nope. maybe we should just stay here another minute." She groaned and shut her eyes as she made contact with the floor again. 

Laura's face filled with concern, “Carm, i'm so sorry, you really are hurt."

Carmilla’s hands came up to rest on Laura's knees that were straddling her. She rubbed them up and down her thighs gently and took a deep breathe. "Ok. Let's move." She started sitting up, her head pounding. She kept her eyes closed and as soon as she was sitting up she let her head fall forward to rest on Laura's chest.

Laura reached her arms around Carmilla to help steady her and ran her fingers gently through her hair. 

Carmilla hummed at the feeling, it was a much better sensation than the explosions happening inside her skull. She opened her eyes and leaned back on her hands. "I don't usually complain about pretty girls being in my lap but I'm afraid you'll have to move in order for me to get up." She smiled up at Laura who was still kneeling over her. 

"Oh! Right!" Laura scrambled to get off of Carmilla, almost falling over in the process. She stood up and straightened out her clothing as Carmilla slowly stood herself up.  Carmilla brought a hand to her head and pressed against the back of it where it had hit the floor and started walking slowly towards the couches. Without Laura's body on top of hers she was suddenly very aware of how cold and wet she was from the rain. She shook out her hair with her hand, water falling to the floor around her. "There's a lost and found box behind the counter."

Laura looked at her curiously. "Oookay?"

Carmilla chuckled, "someone may have left behind some dry clothes for us to change into.”

"Oh!" Laura quickly moved over to the counter to search for the box. Carmilla was right, she searched through the box and happened to find a couple pairs of sweat pants and a large 'Silas U Athletics' t shirt. She also found a few other things that made her question the sanity of some of the people at her college but that's besides the point. 

She hurried back over to where Carmilla was. She had actually gotten a fire started and was just standing in front of it, still rubbing the back of her head. 

“So, I found these." She held up the clothes in front of her and Carmilla turned around.  "You can have the shirt, I think my undershirt is still mostly dry." She handed her a pair of sweats and the tshirt.  She paused and looked around. There wasn't going to be much privacy for them to change and she wasn't sure what to do. 

Carmilla didn't hesitate though.  She turned to face the fire again, away from Laura, and reached behind her back to unhook the corset holding tightly to her body.  She undid it and hung it over the back of the chair sitting next to her. 

Laura couldn't help but stare.  Carmilla’s entire back was exposed and there were trails of water dripping from her hair, rolling down her back. She watched the muscles in her back move as she slipped the shirt over her head. It fell down over her back loosely and Carmilla started to undo her pants. Laura realized she was staring and turned away quickly. She took in a deep breath trying to calm her heart rate and slipped her jacket off her shoulders. She dropped it on a chair and started undoing the buttons of her shirt. Her hands were shaking slighty, from the cold or nerves, she wasn't sure. She finished removing her shirt and she was right, her tank top underneath was mostly dry. She quickly slipped out of her skirt and pulled on the pair of sweats. They were much to big on her and she had to roll up the bottoms a few times before she could even see her feet.

She turned around and saw Carmilla sitting on the couch, leaning forward with her head in her hands. She looked adorable in the baggie shirt and sweatpants.  Laura walked over and sat down close to her on the couch, reached up and started rubbing circles onto her back with her hand.

Carmilla turned to look at her with a smile, then she turned and laid down, placing her head on Laura's lap. "This is much better than the floor."

Laura shook her head and laughed as she went to push Carmilla’s bangs from her face.  Carmilla closed her eyes and leaned into the touch, so Laura kept it up, running her fingers through Carmilla’s hair gently.   Carmilla reached across her waist to find Laura's free hand that was resting on the couch, she brought it up and let their hands rest together on her stomach, playing with Laura’s fingers. 

after a few minutes of silence Laura's hand paused in Carmilla’s hair, "Can I ask you something?" She asked quietly. 

"That always leads to trouble, cupcake" she smirked while keeping her eyes closed.  When Laura didn't respond she opened her eyes to look up at her. She had a curious look on her face but was pouting slightly.  Carmilla sighed, "alright Lauronica Mars, let's hear it."

Laura chuckled before her face turned serious, "what was up with you and that zeta guy, Will?"

The hand playing with Laura's fingers stilled and her eyes went from looking up at Laura to staring at the ceiling. She laid still for a moment before sitting up and leaning her elbows on her knees.  This night has been a whirlwind already and this was only going to add to it. 

"He's my brother." She sighed out, glancing over at Laura. 

Laura blinked hard. "Wait. What now?" Clearly she was going to need more of an explanation. 

"I was adopted, when I was 14. Will became my brother, unfortunately." Carmilla sat up and leaned back against the couch. 

"If he's your brother, then why did it seem like you guys wanted to kill each other back there?" Laura brought her feet up underneath her and turned to face Carmilla. 

Carmilla let out a humorless laugh, "because we did." She looked over at Laura but she didn't seem amused. "Will and I have never really gotten along.  Our mother is... Well she isn't what you would call affectionate. But for some reason she seemed to pay more attention to me, making me her project, and that made Will jealous. What he didn't realize is I would have gladly let him have her attention." She sighed and looked down at her hands in her lap. 

"So who's Elle?" It had come out of her mouth before she could really consider whether or not it was a good idea to ask.

"Elle was-" Carmilla seemed to disappear into her own thoughts for a moment before she continued, her voice somber, "Elle was my first love." She shifted in her seat a little and Laura reached out and took hold of her hand.  She brushed her thumb across Carmilla's knuckles and gave her a comforting smile. 

"I was completely in love with her," she sighed heavily, "but William wanted to ruin that. He told her lies, tried to make me out to be a monster, a cheater. And Elle believed him." She cleared her throat trying to push back the emotion threatening to break the surface. “None of what he told her was true. But, I found them together.  It was only after Elle said she wanted nothing to do with me that Will admitted it was all a game to him. But the damage had already been done."

Carmilla looked at Laura and was given a caring smile. 

Things made sense now.  The feeling she got when Carmilla had mentioned having something in common with Kirsch. This was it.

It was silent for a minute before Laura shook her head and chuckled trying to break the tension, "If history was as exciting as tonight's been, it would be a lot easier to pay attention in class." 

Carmilla smiled at her, she appreciated the gesture of not dwelling on the subject that was clearly not her favorite.  

"You don't think history is exciting?" Carmilla raised an eyebrow at her, acting shocked.

Laura rolled her eyes, ”What, you think they had parties and stuff like this back in 1698?” Her voice full of sarcasm.

"I'm sure of it. They probably drank too much, danced like fools, probably wasn't much different from tonight.” she smiled playfully, "maybe more waltzing and less grinding, but still just as scandalous."

"Scandalous?" Laura looked unconvinced, "how is waltzing scandalous?"

“Well..” Carmilla stood up and turned to Laura and held out her hand. Laura took hold and she pulled her up and brought her close. "Partners were face to face, chest to chest," she lifted Laura's hand and laced their fingers together. She used her other hand to take hold of her waist and pull her in close. She led Laura in a few steps before twirling her under her arm and bringing her back in close, "all of that whirling,” She locked eyes with Laura, "back in 1698, it may as well have been sex.”

They stopped dancing and looked at each other. The flicker of the fire lit up their faces and dances shadows across the room. They could hear the rain falling outside and the snap of embers in the fireplace.

Laura swallowed hard. The way Carmilla was looking at her make her whole body vibrate. Her heart was pounding and she couldn't believe she was standing across from this amazing girl.

Carmilla gave her a small crooked smile, “God, you’re beautiful.”

Laura barely heard her over the sound of the rain, but could feel her cheeks start to blush.

Carmilla reached up and slid her hand behind Laura’s head and leaned in to kiss her. _It was magic_. Every time they kissed, it always made her heart skip a beat. Laura let her tongue trace across Carmilla’s bottom lip and immediately she let her deepen the kiss. Laura hands came up and twisted in the fabric of Carmilla shirt, pulling her tight against her. Without breaking the kiss Carmilla started to lead Laura back to the couch by the fire.

The back of Laura’s legs hit the couch and she slowly started to move down towards it, Carmilla following, leading her to lay down on her back. Laura reached her arms around her and pulled her down on top of her. Carmilla let her hand slide down Lauras side to find the hem of her shirt, she pushed it up and let her fingers draw shapes on her ribs slowly. Laura shivered and let out a small gasp as Carmilla moved her hand up, pushing her shirt further up her stomach.

Carmilla smiled into the kiss and moved to kiss Laura’s jaw and just below her ear. She used her tongue to bring Lauras earlobe between her lips and she bit down gently, eliciting a small moan from the girl beneath her. Laura hands traveled down Carmilla’s back, moving down until they reached her ass. She gripped tightly and pulled Carmilla’s hips tight into her own as she rocked them forward. It was Carmilla’s turn to let out a gasp as their hips connected in just the right spot.

“Mmm, Laura..” Carmilla moaned as she frantically moved her lips down Laura’s neck, sucking lightly at first, then harder the further down she got. She grabbed the strap of Laura’s tank top and pulled it off her shoulder, leaving a trail of kisses across her chest to her shoulder.

Hearing Carmilla say her name sent a shiver down her spine. She wanted this girl, _all of her._ Her hands came up and took hold of Carmilla’s shirt. She tucked her fingers under the hem and lifted it up as she scratched up carmilla’s back. Carmilla’s back arched, moving with the movement of Laura’s hands and their hips met again. They started moving in a faster rhythm, their hips rocking together as they kissed messily. Carmilla could feel her her body tightening. The pull in her stomach was growing and taking over her whole body. She reached up and tangled her fingers in Laura’s hair, kissing her hard.

Laura’s hands brushed against Carmilla’s bare back before she grabbed the shirt that was pushed all the way up and pulled it over her head. Carmilla shifted so Laura could pull it off and toss it on the floor. As soon as the cloth was gone, Carmilla leaned down and connected her lips with Laura’s once again as she took hold of Laura’s shirt and pushed it up her stomach and over her chest. Their bodies came together, their skin touching causing electricity to flow through them both, urging them forward.

Carmilla sat back, getting herself on her knees, pulling Laura with her in a kiss. Laura sat up with Carmilla on her lap and Carmilla broke the kiss long enough to pull her tank top over her head and toss it on top of her own shirt on the floor next to them. She stopped for a second and just looked at Laura. She brought her hands up to cup her face and leaned down to kiss her gently. Slowly.

Laura was surprised at the sudden gentleness after the pace they had been moving. She let her hands rest on Carmilla’s waist as she kissed her. When Carmilla pulled back she let her eyes travel down Carmilla’s body. Transfixed by every curve, every freckle, every inch of her body in front of her.

Carmilla smirked, “Like what you see?” Her voice was raspy and thick, this girl could teach a class on seduction with her eyes closed.

Laura bit her lip, eyes still raking over Carmilla’s body slowly. She let her eyes travel up until she made eye contact with her. She smiled and reached up to grab Carmilla’s face and bring it back down to hers. “Maybe” she mumbled into Carmilla’s lips.

Carmilla smiled into the kiss and slowly started to push Laura back onto the couch adjusting so one of her legs was between Laura’s and slid one of her arms underneath Laura to support some of her own weight. She took her other hand and cupped Laura’s head as she kissed her then slowly trailed her fingers down her body. Following the curve of her breast, trailing down her stomach, sketching patters on her skin as she moved it down slowly. She felt Laura take in a big breathe as her fingers brushed just under the waistband of her pants.

She used a couple fingers to drag along the waistline, teasing Laura a bit while she kissed her. She moved her leg that was between Laura’s to make contact- the way Laura had done to her earlier- having a similar effect. Laura let out a moan and tilted her head back slightly. Carmilla didn't miss the opportunity to connect her lips to Laura’s exposed neck as she moved her leg again, rubbing it harder against her this time.

Laura’s hands came up to hold tightly onto Carmilla’s shoulders as her hips moved with the rhythm of her leg. Carmilla left marks on her neck and moved down to kiss across her chest. She slid her arm further under Laura and undid the clasp of her bra. Laura's breath hitched as Carmilla slowly pulled the straps over her shoulders and down her arms. She dropped her bra on the growing pile of clothes next to them on the floor and brought herself up to hover above Laura’s face.

Laura opened her eyes and smiled at the girl above her. They were both breathing quickly, their chests moving rapidly. Carmilla lowered herself to kiss Laura and let her hand slide under her waistband. Laura took in a sharp breath and Carmilla’s hand moved underneath her underwear slowly.

Carmilla broke the kiss and pulled back to look at Laura giving her a questioning look. Laura shook her head quickly and pulled Carmilla back into a deep kiss. Thats all Carmilla needed to know this was ok. She moved her hand lower, letting her fingers slide across Laura’s already wet center. Laura's head dropped back against the couch.

She let out a loud moan and her hips thrust forward at the touch, desperate for more contact.

——

“Fuck” Laura breathed out heavily, bringing her hands to her face, rubbing her eyes with her palms. She was quite literally seeing stars and having a hard time getting her breathing under control.

Carmilla smiled as she left a trail of kisses up Laura’s stomach, chest and neck, ending on her lips. She gripped Laura’s wrists and pulled her hands above her head. She let her hips rest on Laura’s as she kissed her neck, “Doing ok, cupcake?” she teased, covering the blonde in slow, wet kisses.

Laura let out a slow breathe, “That was-“ she was panting, her eyes still not focusing quite right, she felt light headed and like she had no control over her body still, “That was- fuck.”

Carmilla chuckled and moved her face to hover over Laura’s, “have I left Laura Hollis speechless?” she said playfully. She leaned down and gave Laura a lingering kiss before pulling back again to look her in the eyes.

“I cant feel my hands”

Carmilla laughed and shifted so she was on her side, laying next to Laura on the couch, she let go of Laura’s arms and started running her fingers across Lauras still bare stomach.

Laura didn't move her arms from above her head, she closed her eyes and took another deep breathe, “I cant feel my legs”

Carmilla shook her head and lifted it to place it on her hand, her elbow supporting the weight on the couch.

“That was-“ Laura shook her head and smiled wide over at Carmilla before letting out a giggle. She wasn't sure there was a word to describe what had just happened so she just gave up.

“You’re adorable.” Carmilla leaned over and kissed the edge of her lips, still tracing lines with her fingers on her stomach.

Thunder crashed outside and a flash of lightning ripped through the sky, lighting the room up for a split second. Carmilla just looked at the girl laying next to her and took a deep breathe. She couldn't even begin to describe the way she was feeling, but she knew she never wanted to stop feeling this way.

She rolled over Laura and climbed off the couch. Laura gripped her hand as she did, “Where are you going?”

Carmilla reached down to grab at the clothes on the floor. she picked up the t-shirt and gave Laura’s hand a squeeze before letting go so she could pull it back over her head. “The fire is almost out, and its still raining. So if we are staying here, having a fire is probably a good idea.” She grabbed her underwear and pants from the pile and pulled them on.

Laura watching Carmilla get dressed suddenly made her very aware of her naked state and she sat up and reached for her clothes. Carmilla placed her foot on the pile and slid it across the floor further away from Laura . She leaned down, her hands coming to rest on the couch on either side of Laura’s head and she leaned in to kiss Laura. She kissed her hard and pulled back slowly, letting her eyes trail over Laura’s body before sliding the pile back towards her and standing up.

Laura shook her head, her cheeks on fire and grabbed for her pants and tank top, put them on quickly and sat up on the couch to watch Carmilla get the fire going again. Once she had the fire going she came back to the couch and sat down close to Laura and placed her arm around her shoulder. Laura sank down into the space under Carmilla’s arm and let her head rest on her shoulder. They watched the fire for a while, listening to it pop and crackle along with the sounds of the rain still pouring outside.

Laura let out a yawn and turned to look at Carmilla. Carmilla kept her eyes on the fire and rubbed her hand up and down Laura’s arm gently before turning to meet her stare.

“Tired?” she whispered softly, as she kissed Laura’s temple and tightened her grip around her.

Laura nodded against Carmilla’s lips and let out another yawn. She reached over and grabbed hold of the arm that wasn't wrapped around her and pulled it towards her as she started to lean down to lay on her side on the couch. Carmilla shifted to lay behind her, her back against the back of the couch and Laura facing away from her pulled tightly against the front of her. Carmilla reached behind them and pulled the blanket thrown over the back of the couch down to cover them both. Laura pulled Carmilla’s arm over her and interlocked their fingers up against her chest. Carmilla smiled and nuzzled her face into Laura’s hair, taking in a deep breath.

Laura pulled Carmilla’s arms tighter around her and let out a sleepy sigh as she whispered, “I’m really glad you came tonight.”

Carmilla pulled her in tighter, “Me too, cupcake.”

Laura fell asleep listening to the sounds of the fire crackle and the rain outside, the feeling of Carmilla’s chest moving slowly with every breath and her heart beat beating hard against her back.


	11. Broken Mornings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The morning after the storm has some storms of its own.

Slowly waking up, Carmilla tried to shift on the couch but quickly realized there was no way that was going to happen.  Sometime in the night their positions had shifted and now Carmilla was on her back and Laura was practically on top of her.  

Laura was sprawled across the font of Carmilla, one leg bent and resting over her waist, her arm laying gently over her chest gripping the collar of her shirt loosely. Her head was resting in the space between the center of her chest and shoulder, her lips close enough that Carmilla could feel her breath on her neck every time she exhaled. Her shoulder was nuzzled tight against her body In The space between her side and arm.  

Carmilla opened her eyes slowly and looked down at their bodies pressed against each other and smiled.   _She could get used to this_.   She glanced up at the clock on the wall and knew they had better get up before LaF showed up and lost it.  She reached her hand up and brushed some stray hair away from Laura's face and placed a gently kiss on the top of her head.  Laura stirred but Carmilla wasn't sure she had actually woken up. 

"Laura." She whispered as she brushed her thumb across her cheek. 

Laura let out a groan and tightened her grip on Carmilla’s body, pushing her face further into the crook other neck.   Carmilla let out a chuckle and kissed her head again.  ”Come on, cupcake. We need to go before LaF shows up.”

Laura let out a sleepy sigh and shifted slightly so she could look at Carmilla, “Don’t you usually help them open anyway?”

“Ok sure. But you get to explain that you were in such a rush to get dressed after sleeping with me, on this couch, in the coffee shop, after we broke in through the window, that you left your underwear on the floor cause its no big deal.” She lifted an eyebrow and looked down at Laura.

Laura’s cheeks heated up and her eyes finally opened. Wide.

 _That worked._ Carmilla chuckled as Laura started to sit herself up but quickly stopped laughing as soon as Laura was no longer laying on her arm. She hadn't noticed before but her arm was completely asleep. When Laura moved the blood rushed into her arm sending the sensation of pins and needles down it quickly.

Laura had barely gotten herself upright when Carmilla rolled over towards her quickly clutching her arm. “oh my—gahhh” Carmilla let out a groan, her arm wrapping around Laura to reach her other arm that was tingling intensely. Laura lost her balance on the edge of the couch and they both tumbled to the floor.

“What the?” Laura turned to look at Carmilla who was still clutching her arm, a look of agony on her face.

“It was asleep!” She groaned and rolled on top of Laura playfully, shaking her arm to try to quicken the process of waking it up. 

Laura couldn't help but laugh as Carmilla rolled on top of her, her arm flailing out of control, trying to get rid of the pins and needles.

“Its not funny.” Carmilla tried to glare at Laura but she couldn't help but smile. Her hand was finally feeling normal again and she reached out to grab at Laura’s ribs.

Laura let out a laugh mixed with a shriek and scrunched up her body and tried to roll away from Carmilla on the floor. “Carm, stop!" she yelled between explosions of laughter.

Carmilla’s smile grew wide, she climbed on top of Laura and used her body to hold Laura’s hips in place against the floor. She kept poking at her ribs as Laura thrashed underneath her from being tickled.

“I cant breathe!” Laura still erupting with laughter, actually had tears rolling down her face. She threw her legs up, knocking them into Carmilla’s back hard enough to knock her off balance.  

Carmilla stopped tickling her and put her hands out on the floor to balance herself, smiling down at Laura underneath her. Laura wrapped her legs around Carmilla and reached up and pulled her down into a long kiss.

“Uhhh. Hi?”

Carmilla and Laura broke their kiss and turned their heads towards the coffee shop door to find Laf standing there a perplexed look on their face. They looked back at each other and tried to hold back their laughter, doing a poor job.

“Hey Laf” Carmilla said, still on top of Laura. She gave Laura a wink and pushed herself up to her knees. She looked around the room to make sure everything was still mostly in place to gauge how much trouble they were going to be in and saw the pair of underwear laid out on the hard wood floor next to them.

“We uh..” Carmilla reached over and grabbed the underwear and shoved them in her pocket, hoping Laf hadn't noticed. “we got caught in the rain last night.” She pushed herself up off the floor and reached out a hand to pull Laura up.

“That explains the clothing scattered across the chairs” Laf looked around, seeming more amused than anything else.

“Yeah.” Laura nervously adjusted her tank top and tried to tame her hair. “We’re really sorry, we just-“ She looked to Carmilla for help on what to say next. Carmilla just gave her a shrug and started to stretch, raising her arms above her head.

“We just— needed to get out of the rain.” Laura continued.

Carmilla leaned over, her hands reaching down to her toes. The front of her shirt opened as she bent over and Laura swallowed hard at the sight.

“Riiiight” Laf dragged it out slowly, watching Laura with a skeptical look.

Carmilla stood and put her hands on her hips and looked over to watch Laura. Her hair was still a mess and her clothes tangled on her. Carmilla just couldn't get the picture of waking up with her out of her head, and without realizing it, a smile started to grow on her face.

Laf looked up at the clock, “Don’t you have your thing today?”

“Shit” Carmilla turned her head quickly to the clock then moved over to where her clothes were hanging over chairs.

“What thing?” Laura asked quietly, watching Carmilla gather her things. Last night had been huge. Amazing. But now Carmilla was moving like she couldn't wait to get out of there.

Carmilla bundled her things in her arms and turned to face Laura. She turned and gave Laf a look and they immediately turned around and headed for the counter.

“Last night was..” Carmilla was whispering, her face close to Laura’s.

Laura couldn't read her expression. _Good? Bad?_

“Incredible.” Carmilla smiled and leaned in and gave her a gentle kiss.

Laura sighed in relief. “Ok good, cause I wasn't sure what you were thinking and then Laf came in and I don't want you to be in trouble and last night was just, well, _you know_ —“

Carmilla cut her off with another kiss. This time kissing her harder and using her free hand to pull Laura's body against her own. They slowly pulled apart and Laura let out another sigh.

“Look. I really want to keep doing this but I have something I need to do.” She lifted Laura’s chin with her finger so she could look into her eyes, “Will you meet me later today? Right here, 1:00?” she felt nervous but didn't know why. After last night she had to know Laura would say yes, but she still held her breathe waiting for her to give an answer.

“1:00. I’ll be here.” Laura smiled and stood on her toes so she could kiss Carmilla’s nose and let out a giggle.

“You guys are gross” Laf called out from behind the counter. They put a lid on a to-go cup and walked around the counter and leaned against the front of it. They held out the cup in front of them, waiting for Carmilla to take it.

Carmilla shook her head at Laf’s comment then gave Laura a wink and a smile before turning and heading for the door. She grabbed the coffee from laf and took off.

Laura watched as she jogged down the sidewalk away from the Coffee Shop in her bare feet.

——

“Betty!” Laura swung her door open and ran into her apartment, dropping her things on the floor as soon as she got inside.

“You are never going to guess what happened last night!” She walked through the apartment looking for Betty but hadn't seen her in the common rooms. It was only 8am so she was probably still in bed.

Laura made her way to Betty’s bedroom door and gripped the handle, “I was at the party last nig-nooooo!! oh my God, my eyes!”

Laura threw her arms out in front of her then quickly brought a hand up to cover her eyes, turning around to face the door. “Kirsch?!” The bed creaked and she could hear the shuffling of blankets and bodies and Betty laughing.

“H-hey Laura.” Kirsch stuttered while pulling on his pants.

Laura turned around and separated her fingers that were covering her eyes to check the scene. When she saw kirsch had his pants on and was fumbling with his shirt she dropped her hands down to her sides, “What are you doing here?” She turned to betty with here eyes wide. Betty had pulled the covers up under her chin but was clearly amused at the situation. “What is he doing here?!” Laura was trying not to laugh.

Betty laughed and looked over at Kirsch, “What? He’s hot.” She shrugged and fell back onto her pillows.

Kirsch gave Laura a sheepish smile as he picked up his shoes and walked slowly around her to the door. He stopped in Betty’s doorway and turned around, “I’ll call you later sexy lady” He smiled goofily at Betty and took off down the hall.

Laura watched him scurry away with her jaw dropped, surprise still written all of her face. She turned back to Betty and covered her mouth with her hand to stifle a laugh. “I’m so sorry, I had no idea that was a thing.”

Betty laughed and patted the mattress next to her, scooting over to make room for Laura, “So now that you’re all caught up with how my night at the party went” She gave Laura a pleased look, “tell me what happened with you.”

Laura rolled her eyes and laughed as she hopped up on the bed next to Betty with a squeal. “Ok, so remember that girl Carmilla?” She smiled wide as she started telling Betty about her night.

——

“We would like for you to start at the beginning of the year.” The woman sitting across from Carmilla folded her hands gently on the table and smiled over at her.

“Thats- I mean, that’s an amazing offer.” Carmilla was definitely excited but something was tugging on her mind, holding her back from saying yes immediately. _Laura._ Last night had been amazing but she wasn't sure where they stood. She didn't know what Laura wanted from this. Carmilla knew exactly what she wanted. _She wanted Laura_. But she wasn't sure if Laura was all in, like she was.

“You have some time to think it over,” It’s like the woman could read Carmilla’s mind, “I have to get going to catch my flight, so just let us know what you decide.” She grabbed the stack of papers in front of her and placed them in her bag and stood up.

“Thank you.” Carmilla stood up and shook her hand then watched her walk out of the room.

As soon as the door shut she dropped back into her chair and let out an amused laugh and ran her hand through her hair. “Well shit. Now what?”

——

Laura had been all smiles the entire morning. There was no way this day was going to be ruined. After recounting her night with Carmilla to Betty, they both got ready and went out for breakfast. Betty filled Laura in on how exactly Kirsch ended up in her bed that morning, with a little too much detail for Laura’s liking. After breakfast they headed back home.

“14 missed texts?” Laura had forgotten about her phone in her jacket pocket the night before and only now was finding it while getting ready to do laundry. She scrolled through the texts, 12 from Danny, 2 from Laf.

Laura opened the texts from Laf first

_**Laf (9:53pm):** Me and Per are taking off. We couldn't find you to say bye so I’m following instructions and texting you. _

_**Laf (9:55pm):** By the way, Danny’s been looking for you. _

Ok, on to the 12 from Danny. _Geez, what could have happened that warranted 15 texts in one night?_

_**Danny (9:40pm):** Hey, where’d you run off to? _

_**Danny (9:47pm):** You aren't passed out under the beer pong table or something are you? _

_**Danny (10:20pm):** Kirsch is sooo wasted. _

_**Danny (10:26pm):**  I just met your roommate. she's a wild one isn't she?_

_**Danny (10:45pm):** it's starting to rain pretty hard, you still here? _

_**Danny (10:50pm):** I could walk you home? _

_**Danny (10:52pm):** or you can always crash here if you want _

_**Danny (11:10pm):** really, Where are you? _

_**Danny (11:14pm):** I feel like I've barely seen you tonight  _

_**Danny (11:30pm):** the rain is really getting bad! Someone started a wet t-shirt contest.  _

_**Danny (11:50pm):**  I'm getting worried I haven't seen you or heard back from you. Everything ok? _

_**Danny (12:27pm):** just text me as soon as you can so I know you're ok. Ok? _

“She’s just as bad as my dad” Laura shook her head a little thrown by Danny’s one sided conversation. She decided she better text her back though, before she called the police or something.

_**Laura (10:45am):** Hey Danny! Sorry I left my phone in my jacket and just barely got all your texts. I’m all good though!_

She tossed her phone onto her bed and grabbed her basket of laundry and headed down the hall to the washing machine. She got her clothes started in the wash and headed back into her apartment.

She was trying to kill time until she got to see Carmilla again but it felt like the morning was dragging at an extremely slow pace. She dropped down on her bed and fell onto her back with a sigh. Only a couple more hours until she could kiss Carmilla again.

Her phone buzzed, pulling her from her thoughts of Carmilla. She sat up and reached over to grab it, it was Danny again.

_**Danny (10:50am):** I’m glad you’re ok. Can we meet up today sometime? _

_**Laura (10:51am):** I'm supposed to be at the coffee shop at 1. I could go a little early and catch up with you there for a bit? 12:30? _

Sure that sounded casual. Nothing to worry about, right? Her phone buzzed in her hand and she looked down to read the reply.

_**Danny (10:52am):** Its a date! _

_Crap._

——

When Laura walked into the coffee shop Danny was already sitting at a table waiting for her.  She smiled and waved at Laura but it seemed a little forced.

"Hey Danny!" Laura greeted her happily, sitting down across from her. 

"Hey Laura." Danny was less enthusiastic that Laura was.  "How'd the rest of the party go last night? Sorry I didn't stay to help clean up, from your texts it sounded like things got a little wild." Laura was trying to keep things light. If she was being honest she really just wanted the time to pass quickly until Carmilla got there. 

Danny chuckled and started telling Laura about the party. The wet t-shirt contest, kirsch getting plastered and the rest of the crazy highlights from the night before.  

"Where'd you go last night, anyway?" Danny asked, trying to sound casual but Laura could hear the worried tone of her voice. 

"Oh, I just went for a walk to get away from the noise for a minute." _Wasn't technically a lie_ , "then it started raining so I just took off." _Still not a lie_. 

Danny reached her hand across the table and took hold of Laura's gently, "you should have told me, I was worried when I couldn't find you."

Laura looked a little surprised by the comment, "should have told you? Like, checked in with you before I decided to take a walk?"

Danny ran her free had through her hair and leaned forward a bit, "yeah, I didn't know if you were caught in the storm or--"

"Danny." Laura cut her off, trying not to sound angry, "it's not our job to keep me safe."

"Yes it is!” She looked pointedly at Laura, her tone sounding more worried than she had meant for it to.

"What?" Laura was completely thrown.

\----

Carmilla couldn't believe her morning.  Waking up next to Laura after a night she knew she would never forget, getting the offer of a lifetime, and now she was on her way to see Laura again. 

 _She was happy._  Things were complicated for sure, but she just knew it would work out somehow.  

She had taken the job a Silas Prep right after she graduated.  It was an offer she knew she couldn't pass up, no matter how much she wanted to.  She knew taking the job meant being under her mothers control more than she wanted. But it was also a position she knew would put her ahead of the game.  If she could stick it out long enough, having it on her resume could do wonders for her. 

So that's what she did.  She put up with her mother constantly telling her how to do her job, trying to get her to give up teaching to be on the board and the never ending disapproval of her entire life. 

But things could change.  Her meeting this morning proved that. A different school, across the country, miles and miles away from her mother was interested in her.  More than interested. They were practically begging her to go work for them. 

The only thing holding her back from saying say right away was Laura.  She wouldn't have to leave for a couple months and she wanted to see where things with Laura could go. If Laura would let her. 

Carmilla tried to push it all from her mind. She had some time to think about it, and she still wasn't sure what was going to happen with Laura.   _One thing at a time karnstein_. 

\----

"I care about you, of course it's my job to keep you safe."

"Well I'm sorry me making my own decisions is making it hard to do your job" Laura tried to pull her hand away from Danny's but she tightened her grip. 

She knew she had fucked up. "I didn't mean it like that."

"Yes you did." Laura pulled her hand harder, this time Danny let it go. 

"Look, Laura—" Danny started but was cut of again.  

"I like you." Laura took a deep breathe trying to let her anger go, "I really do. But I don't need a babysitter."

She watched the hurt spread over Danny's face. “If this is because of Carmilla—" 

"No, no." Laura could see the disappointment and heartbreak washing over Danny.  This was the last thing she wanted. She reached out and put her hands on Danny's gently. "This is just, you and me, needing different things." Her expression was kind, even concerned.  She hated seeing people hurt and hated more when she was the one making them feel that way. 

Carmilla had walked in while Laura and Danny were talking but instead of interrupting she went to grab her and Laura some hot chocolate.  She was making her way toward the table when she saw Laura reach out and take Danny's hands. It was gentle, intimate.  She was talking softly and Carmilla couldn't hear but she could see that Danny was upset and Laura was obviously trying to comfort her. 

 _I'm an idiot._  Carmilla stopped dead in her tracks and watched the pair at the table. Suddenly feeling like she was interrupting something very private. She knew it was too good to be true.  She had been wrong about her and Laura. It had obviously meant more to her than to Laura. She wanted to turn around and leave before Laura saw her but suddenly Danny looked up and made eye contact.

Laura noticed Danny looking over her shoulder with a harsh glare and turned to see who she was looking at.

She saw Carmilla and her stomach flipped, she started to smile at her but quickly noticed Carmilla’s expression. It wasn't angry, but hurt. Confused. Laura quickly turned back to Danny and realized she was still holding her hands.

Carmilla was stuck. Laura had seen her and she couldn't help the anger bubbling in side of her. She wasn't angry at Laura, but herself. Embarrassed she had let herself fall for this girl. _Was this Elle and Will all over again?_ The thought that Laura would do that to her broke her heart and she felt like shutting down. Shutting off her emotions and giving up on the idea that things could ever be different for her.

Laura pulled her hands back from Danny’s and stood up and walked over to Carmilla, “Hey Carm, me and Danny were just—“

“It’s fine.” it came out harsher than she meant. Carmilla looked around the room, anything to avoid eye contact with Laura. She really didn't want to deal with whatever form of a letdown Laura was about to give her, “I actually- I need to go.” She turned around and took a step then turned back to Laura.

Laura’s face was a mix between confused and panicked. “Wait, don’t go.”

Carmilla reached out her hands and handed Laura the hot chocolates she had gotten earlier but didn't say anything. Then she turned to leave.

Laura took them and set them down on the table next to them, almost spilling them on the students sitting at the table. “Carm, wait” She went after Carmilla and grabbed her arm.

Carmilla pulled her arm away from Laura but turned to look at her. She was obviously upset but Laura was so confused and flustered from everything that had happened in the last 5 minutes she wasn't sure what to do. “Can we talk?” she asked quietly, trying not to draw more attention to themselves as people in the coffee shop had started looking over in their direction.

Carmilla looked over at Danny then back at Laura, “No need.” She couldn't think about how hurt and confused Laura looked. She needed to protect herself, she couldn't let herself break down in front of a room full of strangers. In front of Laura. She turned to leave again, forcing herself to keep her composure.

“Then at least let me be the one to leave. You cant just skip work because you’re mad at me.”

That was the moment Carmilla couldn't hold back anymore. She turned back to Laura, her voice loud enough for everyone to hear but it didn't sound angry, it sounded hurt, “Mad at you? You think I’m mad at you?!”

Laura shrugged, her face looking more confused.

Carmilla took a step towards Laura, shaking her head. “Laura, this isn't my job. I don’t work here. I didn't spend hours here with you every day because it was my job.”

Laura’s eyebrows came together, if she thought she was confused before, now she was completely lost. “What are you talking about? You help Laf open all the time. And you helped me find a book and before we even started talking you would bring me hot chocolate.”

Carmilla rolled her eyes, “Laura, have you ever seen me take anyone’s order?” She waiting a second but Laura didn't respond, “Help anyone else find a book, make a drink, clean up a table, bring anyone else a drink, actually do anything that would be considered working?”

She was right. Laura hadn't actually ever seen her work when they were at the coffee shop. Never take anyone else a drink, help with a book or clean anything up. “If you didn't work here then why did you help me and bring me hot chocolate everyday?” suddenly it clicked and her eyes went wide. “Oooh. oh.” She looked a mixture of happy Carmilla had done those things because she wanted to and not because it was her job, and embarrassed that she hadn't picked up on it sooner.

Carmilla shook her head and ran a hand through her hair. “I just- I need to go.” She turned around and quickly left before Laura could say anything else.

Laura stood there stunned by what had just happened. She brought a hand up to cover her face and shook her head. She sighed and turned back to Danny. Danny looked just as shocked as Laura at what had just happened but didn't say anything. Laura glanced around the room when she realized it was silent. All eyes were on her and she just wanted to cry.

 _How could the perfect morning, turn into this?_ She quickly turned and ran out of the coffee shop, holding back her tears.

Laura was sitting on a bench outside the coffee shop when she heard someone approaching. She really didn't want to deal with Danny right now, she let out a sigh, her head still buried in her hands, “Can we just talk later, Danny?”

“Not Danny.” Laf answered back, sitting down next to her on the bench.

Laura turned to look at them and they offered her a small smile and handed her a warm cup of hot chocolate, “Extra whip cream. Thought you could use it.”

Laura accepted the drink and took a sip, “What just happened?” She looked at Laf hoping they had the answer she was searching for desperately.

Laf shrugged, “Carmilla’s…” They paused, trying to think of the right thing to say, “Carmilla isn't easy.”

Laura sighed and looked down at the cup in her hand.

“She’s been through a lot and has a hard time letting people in. I’m amazed you were able to get her to open up like you did so quickly.” They shook their head gently then looked back at Laura, “She must really like you.”

Laura turned to look at Laf, “I don’t know how I messed it up.”

“Give her time. She’ll come around.”

With that, Laf stood up and headed back into the coffee shop leaving Laura alone on the bench outside. She sat there for a while before starting the walk home.

——

_**Laura (2:15pm):** Carm, I’m sorry. Please just talk to me_

_**Laura (2:17pm):** I don’t know what happened but I really want to see you._

_**Laura (2:25pm)** : Please Carm. _

Carmilla exited out of her texts and scrolled through her contacts. She hit call and held the phone up to her ear, listing to it ring. She was probably still on her flight so she left a message.

“Hi, Miss Major, its Carmilla Karnstein. I would love to come work for you starting the begging of the year. I look forward to talking with you further about the details. I hope your trip was pleasant. Talk to you soon.”

She ended the call and let out a deep breathe, sinking further into her chair. She knew there was no going back now. She couldn't face Laura. She had fallen for her despite knowing it would end badly, that she would get her heart broken. She thought taking the job would help her feel less broken but it actually only made it worse.


	12. Silence cant last forever

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Stuff happens and people are there. i dont know.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> is anyone even reading this still? ha!

It had been a week since Laura had seen Carmilla. A week since they spent the night in the coffee shop while it stormed outside. A week since she fell asleep in her arms smiling and woke up the same way. A week since everything blew up and she was left confused and heart broken. It had been a long week.

She gave up texting Carmilla after a couple days of not getting a reply. She was sure she had passed the point of what was acceptable fairly early in the week. She would show up at the coffee shop every day hoping to run into her. She would be there first thing in the morning, sit quietly at the back of the coffee shop on the couch they had slept on and just sip hot chocolate and stare at the door.

Then as soon as her classes finished in the afternoon she would show up again and do it all over again until they closed. Sometimes she would try to study, she still had to pass history, but honestly, she never could actually focus long enough for it to be productive.

Danny had gotten the hint and was giving her space. Laura would see her in class and occasionally around campus, but things were different. Which only added to the hurt she was already feeling about the Carmilla situation. Kirsch was around the apartment quite a bit. Apparently things with him and Betty were going surprisingly well. Perry and Laf seemed to always be together. Or around each other. Laura tried to be happy for everyone but it was hard knowing how crappy she felt about her own situation.

Laura was sitting her her usual spot on the couch, flipping through her history book trying to distract herself. It was Saturday so she had been sitting there for hours since she didn't have class and she was more than bored. She flipped her book closed and let out a big sigh and leaned down on her hands, her elbows resting on her knees. She glanced around the coffee shop at everyone and perked up at the sight of someone standing at the counter.

Dark hair, leather pants… _Carmilla?_ Laura jumped up from the couch and practically fell over chairs and tables making her way over to the girl. The girl turned around and Laura lost her breathe for a moment.

“Hey.” Laura said nervously. Excited, nervous, angry, happy.. you name it, she was feeling it.

Carmilla let out a shaky breath and swallowed hard, “Hey.” Her lips turning up slightly then quickly changing to a neutral expression. She looked down at the coffee in her hand then back at Laura.

“Just getting coffee.” Carmilla lifted the cup slightly, her eyes shifting around the room, trying to avoid eye contact with Laura. She had been ignoring her texts and seeing Laura made her feel worse about it than she already did.

She knew she had screwed up. That day a week ago had played over and over in her mind all week. Had she over reacted? Maybe she should have heard Laura out? But what she saw— and she had already accepted the job offer that would take her away. There was no point in trying to fix it. Whatever it was. She needed to try to get over Laura. Even though she knew it was impossible.

Laura bit her bottom lip nervously, “I tried texting you.” She looked expectantly at Carmilla. She had wanted to see her so badly, practically camped out all week just for the chance, and now that she was right in front of her its like she had no clue what to do.

“Yeah sorry, things have been..” She finally looked at Laura. She saw the hurt in Laura’s eyes and sighed, “just, sorry.”

Her heart felt like it had been crushed that day she got upset. But standing across from Laura, seeing her look so sad, and not being able to kiss her or make it better crushed her heart even more. What was she supposed to do? Was it even possible to fix things? Or had her stubbornness ruined it and now it would be too late?

Laura took a step forward, causing Carmilla to take in a sharp breathe. Laura was about to speak when someone from behind them spoke.

“Miss K!”

Carmilla shut her eyes tight and let out a breathe. Its like the universe didn't want this to happen with all the interruptions that happened. She opened her eyes, smiled and turned around to face the person talking to her.

Laura was surprised at Carmilla’s shift in attitude at being spoken to by someone that looked to be about 17 years old. She had seen her with other people before and she always was a bit snarky and shut off. _Except with her, of course._ But before she turned around her smile looked genuine, her attitude positive and her voice was kind and actually pretty enthusiastic.

“Jake.” Carmilla smiled at the teenager, glanced over her shoulder at Laura quickly and turned her attention back to the boy in front of her. “What brings you to Silas on a Saturday?”

“Campus tour.” Jake shrugged and pointed over his shoulder to a group of about 6 or 7 teenagers walking in, “Bunch of us came together.”

The group walked over to Carmilla and Laura just stood there watching. Carmilla was a whole different person. She was talking and laughing with these kids, and they seemed to really love her. Every once in a while she would glance over her shoulder to look at Laura, even smiled when she did. She was asking them about school, their college plans, she seemed genuinely interested and excited for them.

“Alright guys, be nice to your tour guide, yeah? I’ll see you all on Monday.” Carmilla gave a couple high fives to the eager teenagers before turning around, “I’ll see you around, Laura.” She gave her a small smile and walked out of the coffee shop.

Laura stood there for minute stunned. First off, she was kicking herself for not knowing what to do when she saw Carmilla after hoping to see her all week, and second, _who was that person?!_ She walked over to Jake and tapped him on the shoulder, “Hey, sorry” she smiled, “How do you know Carmilla?”

“Oh, Miss K?” he looked surprised at the question but smiled none the less, “She’s awesome. She's our history teacher.” He gestured to the rest of the group with him.

A couple of them chimed in with their own comments, “She’s probably the best teacher at that school”, “I know, I actually like going to her class”, “She’s smoking hot too”.

Laura rolled her eyes at that last one. _Teenagers_.

Jake shrugged and turned back to his friends, “It sucks she’s leaving though.”

Laura was no longer part of the conversation but she didn't miss the comment.  
_Leaving? Teacher?_

She walked back over to her things and sat down the couch, her face scrunched up in confusion. _Carmilla was a history teacher. At a high school. And those kids really liked her. And she was leaving? Leaving where?_ Laura felt like an idiot for making so many assumptions about her. No wonder she was so good at helping her with her history class. But also, she had this whole life that Laura had no idea about.  She had been so focused on her own things, she hadn't even really gotten to know Carmilla. 

Suddenly she felt awful.  She had been so frustrated with Carmilla since she had jumped to conclusions about what was going on a week ago she didn't even consider where Carmilla could be coming from.   She had spent hours helping Laura, on top of her job at a freaking private school.  She had opened up about Will and Elle but-- _oh crap_.   _Will and Elle_.  She probably saw her and Danny and thought-- _oh crap_.

She was done being mad. And she was done being passive.  She had to try.  Laura pulled out her phone and opened up a text screen. 

_**Laura (3:15pm):** I can explain everything. You have to give me a chance. _

She wasn't expecting a reply but she had to at least try.  And now she knew exactly what to do if Carmilla showed up at the coffee shop again. 

——

Carmilla abruptly swung the door open wide, "It's Sunday why are you here?" She lifted an eyebrow a little shocked at the sight of two people standing there instead of one, "You're not alone."

LaF shook their head, "and you're not wearing pants." They walked past her into the apartment, pulling Perry with them by the hand. "Does It have to be like this every time I come over?"

Perry looked a little shocked and tried to avert her eyes, "does she not wear pants?" She whispered to LaF quietly. 

Carmilla chuckled, these two were a riot.  LaF got comfortable at the counter while Perry looked around the apartment clearly not impressed with the lack of organization. Carmilla wasn't dirty- she just wasn't very tidy.  

She walked back to her room and reappeared a minute later wearing some sweats and carrying a book. She ignored the gingers sitting patiently at her counter and walked over to her couch and dropped down into the cushions. She threw her feet up on the couch, an arm behind her head and started reading.  

LaF and Perry exchanged a look before LaF stood up and walked over to stand above Carmilla. "You're just going to ignore us?"

Carmilla ignored them. _Surprise_. 

LaF grabbed Carmilla’s feet and pushed them off the cushion and sat down next to her. “Seriously?"

Carmilla sighed dramatically and shut her book and sat up. "Fine, what?"

LaF glanced over to Perry and back to Carmilla. "We're just worried about you."

Perry had nervously started cleaning up around the kitchen, when Carmilla looked over at her she was scrubbing some dishes in the sink.

"I'm fine." Carmilla watched Perry across the room, really jut avoiding looking at LaF. She knew they were good at reading her. 

"I don't buy it." They leaned back on the couch, "what happened with Laura?"

"Wow, nosey much?" Carmilla snapped sarcastically. 

"You're my best friend. I can't just sit back and watch you screw something good up without trying to help you see you're being an idiot." LaF shrugged. 

Carmilla sighed and looked down at her book, playing with the pages. "I already know I'm an idiot."

Laf’s eyes went wide. "I'm sorry, what?" Had she really just admitted that?

Carmilla just rolled her eyes but the annoyance wasn't there, it seemed more sad than anything else.  

"Then why aren't you doing anything to fix it?" Perry had stopped scrubbing and was walking over towards them. 

Carmilla watched them both carefully. She could see how happy they were together. Just seeing them look at each other, you could tell.  Seeing it only made her more sad.  Maybe her and Laura could have had that. But she screwed it up and because she made a choice from being hurt, now she was leaving and she'd never know.

"I just-" Carmilla stopped, trying to put into words what she felt, "She was magic. She’s something people go their entire lives thinking doesn't exist. But she does. And I just- I let her go." She shook her head gently, looking back to her hands, "I saw her with Danny and I just let her go, just like that, without a fight."

"But she's not with Danny." LaF blurted out. 

"What?" Carmilla looked up quickly, eyebrows pushed together.

Perry gave Laf a look clearly unimpressed by their tact with the emotion Carmilla was showing.  "She was turning Danny down when you got upset.  That's what you saw."

The confusion left Carmilla’s face and was replaced by realization.  She had misjudged the entire situation and acted like an ass.  If she had only listened to Laura, not jumped to conclusions. If only.   

"It's too late anyway." Carmilla huffed angrily at herself.

"What are you talking about? Just go talk to her." LaF shrugged casually. 

"There's no point. I'm leaving and that's not fair for me to ask Laura to forgive me then leave right after." Carmilla looked over at LaF. She hadn't told them yet. "I accepted a job offer."

LaF looked unconvinced that that was a good enough reason not to talk to Laura.  

"In Seattle." Carmilla admitted quietly, waiting for a reaction. 

"Seattle?" Laf’s eyes went wide in surprise. "As in 2,500 miles away, Seattle? That Seattle?"

"You know the amount of miles between there and here off the top of your head?" Carmilla looked impressed. 

"Not the point!" LaF stood up quickly. "When are you leaving?"

"January." 

LaF let out a breathe and shook their head, turned and walked out of the apartment without saying anything. 

Perry was still sitting on the arm of the couch and watched LaF walk out and shut the door. She turned to Carmilla with a determined look on her face. Like she knew something Carmilla didn't.  

"Carmilla." She cleared her throat, "there's plenty of time between now and January. Laura is a big girl and can decide what's fair for her on her own.  If you like her you should be honest with her. Communication is key." She stood and straightened out her turtle neck sweater, "besides, she still needs to pass history, and didn't you promise her you'd help her do just that?" She gave Carmilla a look like she was pleased with herself and turned and left, closing the door gently behind her. 

Gosh she sounded so smug but Carmilla knew she was right.  It wasn't fair for her to decide what was or wasn't fair for Laura.  If the situation was reversed, she would want to know what was going on and decide for herself. And yeah, she had promised to help her pass history. 

——

 “Perry this is useless.” Laura dropped her head down onto the book in front of her with a huff.

“I’m sorry sweetie, I promise I’m trying” Perry sighed, she was also feeling quite defeated.

“No, no! Its not your fault!” Laura sat up and grabbed Perry’s forearm gently, “I just struggle as it is, and I got so used to Carm— I just, I don’t know. History just isn't my thing.” She shrugged and leaned back in her chair.

“Maybe you should get Carmilla to help you again. You were doing so well when she was studying with you” Perry smiled wide, sounding cheerful, like she had no idea what had been happening the last 2 weeks.

“You know I cant do that. I tried talking to her, she wont talk to me.” Laura eyed Perry, she suddenly wasn't making eye contact and she was making the face she only made when she was lying. “Do you know something?”

“I—Its not my place to say” Perry shook her head strongly.

“Perry! Come on, if you know something you have to tell me.” Laura started to pout and held her hands up in a begging manner.

“You know I cant do that. How would you feel if the next time I saw her I mentioned your Internship?” Perry gave her a firm look and pursed her lips together, and crossed her arms over her chest. She was a vault, this one.

Laura rolled her eyes, “you’re right.”

“But,” Perry’s demeanor softened and she placed her hands on the table, “I will say that you should go talk to her.”

“Perry, I’ve tried text—“

“GO talk to her. As in, go, in person, speaking, none of this silly texting that everyone does all the time. Stop taking the easy way out and just GO TALK TO HER!”

Laura’s eyes opened wide and she actually smiled. Seeing Perry get so worked up like this was new, and it was actually pretty amusing. Jokes aside, Perry was right. What was keeping her from just going and talking to her? Maybe it was that she had no idea where she lived. “You’re right, Perry.”

Laura's eyes narrowed, a look of determination on her face. She stood up and marched over to the counter and leaned her hands on it, “Write down Carmillas address, right now.”

Laf looked up a little surprised at the demanding tone in Laura’s voice, then they pulled out their note pad and started writing, “It’s about damn time” they muttered as they handed Laura the piece of paper with the address scribbled on it.

——

Carmilla was staring into her fridge when her phone buzzed on the counter. She glanced over her shoulder and looked at her phone. She wasn't sure she wanted to check it. She was still ignoring Laura’s texts, even though it had been a few days since she had gotten one from her. She knew she was being stupid, but she didn't know what to do. With everything that happened, she realized how much she actually liked Laura and didn't want her heart to break more than it already had. What if she told her she was sorry and wanted to be with her and ended up getting turned down. Or what if she liked her back but didn't want to try to make it work because she was leaving. So many what if’s and it was easier trying to ignore the situation instead of fix it.

She took a breath and shut the fridge and walked over to the counter. Her phone buzzed again and she saw the name light up, “Laf?”

she unlocked her screen and read out the texts,

_**Laf (5:45pm):** Don’t hate me _

_**Laf (5:48pm):** And go put on some pants _

Carmilla laughed at the last text. Before she could type out a reply there came a loud knock on her door. Carmilla shook her head and put her phone back on the counter. She considered putting on pants but decided against it just to spite them. If they were going to show up on a Friday night, they could deal with it.

Carmilla swung open the door wide with a smirk that quickly changed to an expression of surprise, “You’re not Laf”

Laura stomped past her into the apartment and turned around, hands on hips, “No, I’m not Laf! And you know what else I’m not? I’m not okay with you ignoring me! I’ve tried to be patient but you just stopped drinking coffee or something which I didn't think was possible because you are practically made out of the stuff.”

Her hands were moving animatedly and her face was scrunched up in the way it only did when she was frustrated and Carmilla couldn't help but smile. She shut the door quietly and just let Laura continue to rant.

“We had this amazing night together, like the most amazing night of my life, and then something happened and you just disappeared. You disappeared and I’m not okay with that! And then Laf told me you’d come around but you literally didn't and I’ve been trying to study without you and its basically pointless. And you’re a history teacher and I didn't know and I think thats amazing. And I think you’re amazing.”

Carmilla’s smile started getting bigger. She was here. In her apartment. And all she wanted to do was kiss her, and the more angry she got, the more she wanted to. She took a step towards Laura and suddenly Laura didn't look angry anymore, she looked nervous. It was like she had built up all this courage to show up and tell Carmilla off but as soon as she was in her space, it was al starting to jumble together and she didn't know whether to be angry or kiss her.

Laura cleared her throat, trying to get back her train of thought “So I’m here because—“ she had to take a breathe as Carmilla took another step forward, closing the space between them even more, “Because, well I don’t, I don’t remember the exact reason, but I’m not leaving until we talk. Because I really like you, Carmilla.” All the frustration left her body in another big breath, she watched as Carmilla licked her lips and stepped forward again. “I really, really like y—“

Carmilla reached forward and took hold of Laura’s face, cupping her cheeks in her hands and pulled her into a kiss. She tangled her fingers in her hair and held her head firmly, deepening the kiss. Laura reached up and let her hands drag down the length of Carmilla’s arms, stopping on her elbows.

Carmilla pulled back, barely separating their lips. She leaned in and gave her a few slow pecks before pulling back again, “Are you done? Cause I’ve been wanting to do that for a while now and I have some time to make up for.” She leaned in and gave Laura another quick kiss.

Laura smiled into the kiss and pulled back, their faces inches apart, “I just have one more question.” She looked at Carmilla with a serious expression.

“hmm?” Carmilla’s eyebrows came together, almost concerned at how serious Laura seemed.

“Why aren't you wearing pants?” Laura giggled and leaned forward to kiss Carmilla again.

Carmilla smiled into the kiss, “I can put some on if you want” she mumbled against Laura’s lips between kisses.

Laura started leaving a trail of kisses along Carmilla’s jaw line, ending just below her ear, then whispered, “I’d just take them off again” She bit Carmilla’s ear lobe gently then pulled back, giving Carmilla a flirty smile before letting go of her completely and turning and walking in the direction of the bedroom. “Coming?” she turned and asked before disappearing through the doorway.

Carmilla stood there with her jaw dropped, she liked this side of Laura. _Maybe she should make her mad more often._

_——_

_“_ This doesn't mean we are done talking” Laura gripped the hem of Carmilla shirt and pulled it over her head.

Carmilla leaned forward and kissed her as soon as the fabric was gone, “mmhmm” she hummed against Laura’s lips. She reached down and undid the button on Laura’s pants quickly and slid her hands into the denim and slid them down the side of her thighs, bringing the pants down with them.  She backed Laura up against the bed and let her fall back onto the mattress. Laura sat up slightly, leaning back on her elbows, watching Carmilla stand at the foot of the bed.

Carmilla used the opportunity to grab the bottom of Laura's pants and pull them off swiftly before leaning over her and kissing her while she slowly kneeled on the bed and started to crawl on her hands and knees on top of Laura.

”I'm serious" Laura said between kisses, her hands gripping tightly to Carmilla’s body that was slowly pressing down on her. 

"Kiss now, talk later." Carmilla moved her lips down to brush along Laura's neck. "Got it" she let her tongue trace down her neck before sucking hard in the space above her collar bone. 

Laura eyes fluttered shut and she mumbled a response as her head fell back against the pillow, but even she wasn't sure what she was trying to say.  All she could focus on was how warm Carmilla’s mouth was and how gentle her hands were as they trailed along her body. 

Carmilla moved back up and captured Laura's lips in a hard kiss, letting her hips press against Laura's gently.   Laura let out moan and kissed her harder.  She reached down to grab Carmilla’s waist and pulled it tighter against her, hungry for more contact.  

Carmilla smiled into the kiss and moved her hands to find the hem of Laura's shirt.  She gripped it tightly and slid it up to expose her stomach.  Laura shuddered as Carmilla’s fingers grazed along her ribs and she gripped onto her waist tighter.  Her chest was rising and falling rapidly with her heart quickening it's pace to follow suite. 

Carmilla sat up on her knees and pulled Laura up so she was sitting. She tugged her shirt along with her bra over her head and threw them to the floor by the bed before wrapping her arms around Laura's neck and kissing her while she straddled the blonde sitting on the bed.  Laura used the opportunity to reach around Carmilla’s back and unclasp the black lace bra still on her. She let the straps fall down Carmilla’s shoulders slowly, tracing the curve of her spine with her fingers lightly.  

"I missed you" Carmilla whispered in Laura’s ear as she slowly lowered her down onto her back. She kissed her lips gently, “I missed your smile” she kissed her cheek, “your laugh” her neck, “your voice” her shoulder.

Laura felt the warm breath on her neck and her own breath got caught in her lungs for a moment. Her chest tightened from what she was saying and it was like the heartbreak from the last two weeks was slowly disappearing. 

Carmilla’s kisses were slowly becoming more gentle and less lustful.  She pulled herself back to hover above Laura slightly. Her expression suddenly changing from desire and want to something more like concern, "I'm so, so sorry, Laura" she whispered, swallowing hard, closing her eyes tightly.  

After two weeks of wishing things could be different with Laura, having her here, in her bed, was suddenly making her feel more than she expected or wanted to admit. 

Laura pushed herself up so she was partly sitting up, leaning back on her elbows, making herself closer to Carmilla. "Hey, Carm. Hey, it's ok." She shifted her weight onto one arm and lifted the other hand to Carmilla’s face, brushing the hair from her face, tucking it behind her ear and letting her thumb trace gently over her cheek. 

She was surprised at the sudden emotion Carmilla was showing. She sounded so small and vulnerable. Carmilla leaned into the touch and opened her eyes again to look at the girl below her.  She let out a shaky breathe and smiled.

It made Laura's heart jump and her chest tighten. It was the honest, real smile that Laura had fallen in love with. 

_Love? Yeah.. Love._  

Laura leaned up and kissed Carmilla gently.  

The mood shifted dramatically.  It had gone from a frantic need and desire spurred on by their bodies, to something more intimate. Something different, more special. 

Their pace changed, going from hands trying to touch everything at once to more deliberate movements, drinking in every inch of each others bodies one touch at a time.  The kisses went from hungry, needy and messy to suddenly speaking more to each other than words ever could. 

——

“If this is what happens when you’re angry” Carmilla was panting, her arms thrown out to her sides across the bed, “Then I really need to start pissing you off more often.”

Laura giggled and placed a kiss just above her belly button before pulling the sheet down and poking her head out from underneath it to look up at a smiling Carmilla.

“Thats a terrible idea” She started moving up her body, leaving a trail of kisses as she did. She leaned down to give Carmilla a long kiss before rolling onto her back next to her, pulling the covers up to cover them both. She let out a big sigh and closed her eyes, letting herself sink further into the mattress, “That’s not what I expected to happen when I came over here.”

“No?” Carmilla turned her head to look at the girl next to her.Thats all her body could manage at the moment, it was still trying to recover from the last few hours they had spent in the bed together. “And what exactly did you expect?”

“Not that.” Laura laughed loudly.

_God, she loved that laugh_.

Carmilla smiled at Laura. How could she not? She was beautiful, in every sense of the word. She rolled over onto her side and scooted closer to Laura, snuggling up against her side and laying her head on her chest.

Laura looked down at the girl now snuggled practically on top of her and smiled. She reached her arm up that was around her back and started running her fingers through her soft curls, “I didn't peg you for the cuddling type.” she whispered, letting her eyes close, enjoying the warmth of Carmilla’s body against her own.

Carmilla let out a slow breath, “I’m not” she whispered. Her breathing slowly matching the rhythm of the rise and fall of Laura's chest. She could hear her heart beating quickly and the feel of her playing with her hair was slowly lulling her to sleep.   

She tightened her grip around Laura's body and leaned her head up to examine her face, "Laura?"

Laura smiled.  She loved the way it sounded when Carmilla said her name. She tugged her body in closer, not wanting there to be any space left between them, "Yeah?" she whispered, nearly asleep.

"I really, really like you too." 

"good." Laura smiled wider, she couldn't think of a better way to fall asleep than with Carmilla in her arms.

 


	13. Good morning, good bye?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Carmilla helps Laura study some more... a different kind of reward system is introduced.

Laura let out a yawn and stretched her arms over her head slowly. She smiled as she felt a body scoot closer to her.  She opened her eyes and saw Carmilla still wrapped around her, sleeping soundly. She brought her hand down to run her fingers through her dark curls gently.  She knew they needed to talk.  A lot had happened over the last two weeks, and she had something she knew she needed to tell Carmilla. But for now, holding her while she slept wasn't so bad. 

Carmilla woke up to the gentle tug of fingers through her hair but didn't open her eyes. She just wanted to soak in every second of this while she could.  She was still leaving for Seattle and didn't know what would happen once Laura found out.  She sighed softly against Laura’s chest, smiling against her skin.

“morning, cupcake” Her voice was raspy and still full of sleep.

“Hey” Laura whispered, still running her fingers through Carmilla’s hair, “Did i wake you?”

She shook her head and rolled onto her back, stretching the sleep from her body. “The fact that its 1:00 in the afternoon did though.”

“one?!” Laura sat up quickly, tugging the sheet with her to keep her body covered, “I’m so late for class!” She turned to look at Carmilla with a panicked expression.

Carmilla let out a laugh and rolled to her side and pulled Laura by her arm back down onto her back. She placed a soft kiss on her shoulder, “Its Saturday, buttercup” She started to trace shapes along her arm with her fingers.

Laura let out a chuckle and turned on her side to face Carmilla, “oh.” she bit her lip and looked at the girl next to her. They just looked at each other for a moment before Laura broke the silence. “So you’re a history teacher.”

Carmilla smiled and looked down at her fingers still leaving lines along Laura’s arm, “I am.”

“Your students really love you.” Laura kept her eyes locked on Carmilla.

“Oh yeah?” She ran her fingers up Laura’s arm and was now brushing them across her shoulder and chest, along her collarbones.

“Yeah.” Laura let out a shaky breath. Its amazing how just a simple touch from Carmilla can make her heart race. “I think they all have crushes on you.”

Carmilla chuckled and stilled her hand, letting it drop down to the mattress between them. She looked up to make eye contact with Laura. “Don’t worry, cupcake. You're definitely my favorite student.” She leaned forward and captured Laura’s lips in a gentle kiss.

Laura blushed and as soon as Carmilla pulled back, she buried her face into the pillow, rolling onto her stomach. “Actually” she mumbled into the pillow before turning her head to the side to look at Carmilla, “I was wondering..”

Carmilla lifted an eyebrow, waiting for the rest of what Laura was going to say.

“Do you think you’d be willing to help me study again?” She shifted to her side again and proped herself up on one elbow, her face turning serious, “Cause Perry’s been trying but we both know how well that turned out the first time, and you’re really good at helping me. Obviously because you’re a history teacher which makes total sense now. But if you don’t want to or are too busy thats okay too, its just I really need to pass this class. Actually I need to pass it more now than I did before because—“

“cupcake” Carmilla had reached her hand up and covered Laura’s mouth, “Stop talking. I’ll help you study.” She smiled and dropped her hand, “I promised I’d help you pass that class, and I wouldn't break a promise.”

Laura smiled wide and leaned over to kiss her. Carmilla kissed back, pushing Laura onto her back. Without breaking the kiss, Carmilla moved her body over Laura’s so her legs were straddling Laura’s waist. Laura took in a sharp breath, realizing quickly they were both still naked from the night before. She hummed against Carmilla’s lips, moving her hands to grip her sides. _She really liked where this was going._ Her eyebrows came together and her lips pouted as she felt Carmilla pull away. She opened her eyes to see Carmilla hovering over her with a smirk.

“So, miss hollis, what are we talking about in class today?” Her smirk changed to a look of pure seduction as she licked her lips, bit her bottom lip, and very obviously trailed her eyes over Laura’s naked body underneath her.

Laura blushed and bit her bottom lip to keep herself from giggling nervously, “world economy?” her voice cracked as she watched Carmilla’s eyes trail over her body, then back up to look at her lips.

“hmm” Carmilla hummed out, a thoughtful look on her face. “The post–World War II economic expansion, was also known as… what?” she raised an eyebrow and slowly started to lower herself towards Laura, stopping when their lips were just a breathe apart.

Without thinking Laura started to tilt her head up, trying to make contact with Carmilla’s lips, but they were just out of reach. Carmilla chuckled and shook her head slowly, “now, now, miss Hollis. You have to answer the question correctly before you get your reward.” She smiled smugly and licked her lips suggestively.

Laura smiled wide and shook her head. _Gosh she was sexy_. “it was also know as, the postwar economic boom, the long boom, and the Golden Age of Capitalism.” That was one of the few things she actually did remember and boy was she glad for that.

Carmilla looked impressed, “Very good, miss hollis.” She leaned down and gave Laura a lingering kiss. Running her tongue against her bottom lip and deepening the kiss as soon as Laura let her.

Things were starting to get heated when she pulled away abruptly, causing Laura to let out a needy whine. She moved down and let her lips hover over Laura’s neck, her breath on Laura’s skin causing her to shiver and her breathing to become heavier. Carmilla was much too good at this game of teasing.

“what year did this long boom end?” she let her lips barely brush against Laura’s skin.

“1960’s” Laura answered quickly, her hands gripping onto Carmilla’s body tightly. She wasn't sure she was right but she didn't want to waste time thinking when she could have Carmilla’s body pressed against her own, and her lips on her skin.

Carmilla pulled back from Laura further, “Tsk, tsk. Incorrect.”

Laura looked devastated as Carmilla pulled further away. _This was a cruel game_. “1970’s. I’m sure of it” Laura looked at Carmilla, hoping she had gotten the answer right this time. She was going to start taking this a lot more serious now that she knew Carmilla wasn't going to give in to wrong answers.

Carmilla smiled and let herself move down towards Laura again, leaving a trail of kisses down her neck as she let one of her hands slide gently up her stomach to her chest. Laura shut her eyes and let her head fall back into the pillow with a moan as Carmilla covered her in kisses and began to massage her chest gently.

_She really liked this game again_.

Carmilla continued to quiz Laura, teasing her and rewarding her as the questions went on.

——

Laura let out a noise of frustration as she got another question wrong and it made Carmilla laugh. A loud, free, honest laugh that filled the room.

“its not funny!” Laura huffed and brought her hands up to cover her blushing face. “I cant help it” she started to laugh herself.

Carmilla kept laughing but moved herself back up Laura’s body and gave her a quick kiss on the cheek, “You’re the one that wanted help studying” She smiled down at the girl underneath her.

“That was before I knew what was going to happen” She tried not to smile but couldn't help it with how adorable Carmilla was being, “This is torture.”

“Now come on, I thought you were doing quite well.” Carmilla raised her eyebrows, “I’d say you’re a solid B student at the moment.”

“Maybe if all the blood wasn't rushing away from my brain to other parts of my body I would be an A student” Laura joked, leaning up quickly to catch Carmilla in a kiss.

Carmilla was too slow to pull away and once their lips connected she didn't want to anymore. She let herself relax on top of Laura, letting the kiss deepen. _Maybe a study break wasn't such a bad idea._

Laura wrapped her arms around Carmilla’s neck tightly. If she was going to stop teasing her for a moment, she wasn't going to let her go easily when she decided it was time to study again.

But Carmilla didn't pull away. In fact, she slid her arms underneath Laura’s back and adjusted their hips and started rocking hers into Laura’s gently. Laura felt a pull in her stomach and immediately felt the rest of her body heat up. Carmilla had that effect on her.

She moved her hands from around Carmilla’s neck and let them scratch down the length of her back, grabbing onto her waist tightly. She rolled their bodies over so she was now on top of Carmilla and pulled back to look at her.

Carmilla placed her hands on Laura’s hips that were now straddling her, pressing them down, starting a steady rhythm of friction. She watched as Laura’s breathing started to get heavier and her chest was rising and falling quickly with each breath. The look Laura was giving her was intoxicating. It was full of emotion- lust and adoration. Carmilla reached up and let her hand slide around the the back of Laura’s neck and pulled her down into a hard kiss, keeping their hips moving together quickly. She took the hand that wasn't holding Laura’s head and slid it from her waist, down the front of her between their bodies.

Laura let out a gasp at Carmilla’s hand now placed between her legs. Carmilla felt how wet she was already and it only made her want Laura more. She rolled them over again so she was now on top of Laura, she kept their bodies pressed together with just enough space for her hand to stay down between Laura’s legs.

Laura let out a moan and gripped onto Carmilla tightly, deepening their kiss. It was messy and hard and Carmilla could feel her body tensing underneath her. She knew she was close. She quickened the pace of her hand, the sounds escaping Laura urging her on. She knew she was almost there.. she could feel it… “

She heard her front door slam hard and the clicking of heels making their way down the hall.

"Carmilla!!”

“Shit!” Carmilla quickly rolled off of Laura, “I’m sorry, I’m so sorry”

Laura looked more confused than anything else. She had heard the door slam as well so she knew why Carmilla had stopped- _even though she really wished she hadn’t._ Her face was panicked, far more that what Laura would expect from being interrupted. Something else was wrong.

Carmilla rolled off the bed and quickly grabbed a shirt from off the floor and threw it on, along with a pair of pants. She ran her hands through her hair in an attempt to tame the messy curls.

Laura scooted herself back against the headboard and brought the sheet up to cover herself, “What’s going on? Who’s here?” She asked quietly watching as Carmilla moved about the room frantically.

“Just-“ She looked around the room quickly before looking back at Laura, a panicked look still on her face, “Just stay here, ok?”

Laura nodded. She wasn't sure what was happening but the expression on Carmilla’s face made it clear now was not the time to ask questions.

Carmilla came back to the bed quickly and gave Laura a kiss. "I'm sorry" she whispered before turning and rushing out of the bedroom, shutting the door behind her.

——

“You shouldn't be here.”

Laura knew she probably shouldn't listen, but with how the sound traveled, it was kind of hard not to. Carmilla didn't sound like herself. Her voice was controlled and nervous. Laura could tell she was angry, but she sounded like she was trying not to show it.

“You gave me no choice. Ignoring my calls is a little childish, don't you think? I expect better from you, Carmilla.”

She had no idea who the owner of the other voice was, but she didn't sound happy. She was definitely older, her voice was harsh and cold. Even being in the other room, Laura wanted to hide under the covers when she spoke.

“I’m sorry.” Carmilla spoke through clenched teeth, “I’ve been busy, I didn't mean to—“

“Don’t lie to me Carmilla.” Her mother cut her off, “What did you think was going to happen? That I would never find out?”

Carmilla glanced over her shoulder towards the bedroom door. She was sure Laura could hear what was being said and she really wished she had told her about the job before her mom showed up. She looked back to her mother, she had to at least try to get her to leave before she ruined everything.

“This is not the time to discuss it, Mother.” Carmilla stepped forward, trying to keep her voice low. “I will come to your office first thing Monday.” She tried to urge her mother towards the door but she wasn't moving.

She stepped towards Carmilla instead of back towards the door like she wanted, “Remember your place.” Her hand came up and slapped Carmilla hard across the face. “I will not have you telling me what to do.”

Carmilla lifted her hand to her cheek, feeling where her mother had slapped her. She could taste blood in her mouth and felt the cut on her lip. “I’m sorry, it wont happen again.” She said quietly.

This is not how she thought this day was going to go. Laura was in the other room and she had no idea what was going through her mind.

Laura heard what she thought was a slap and sat up in the bed. She gripped the sheets tightly around her. _Was she supposed to just sit here? What was happening in the other room?_ She didn't want to make it worse by barging in, she obviously didn't know what was happening, but she didn't just want to just sit there and listen to Carmilla get yelled at.

She climbed out of the bed and found her clothes around the floor and started getting dressed. Pulling her pants on then finding her bra and shirt and getting them on quickly. She walked over to the bedroom door and stood behind it, leaning in close to try and hear better.

“I had to hear from someone else that my own daughter, the same on I have personally been grooming to run the board, had accepted another job. Across the country!!” Her voice was getting louder, laced with anger.

_Across the country?_ Laura let out a breathe and took a step back from the door. _Thats what the students meant when they said she was leaving._

“I had meant to tell you. It only just happened.” Carmilla’s voice was still low. She wasn't sure if she was more nervous having her mother standing in front of her, clearly furious. Or the fact that Laura was probably hearing everything in the other room and she couldn't explain it to her.

Carmilla’s mother stayed silent. She watched her daughter closely, considering her next move. She took a step towards Carmilla and saw her flinch away from her. Apparently that satisfied her for the moment. She turned without saying anything and walked to the door. She gripped the handle and pulled the door open before turning back to face Carmilla.

“First thing Monday. My office.” She didn't wait for a response, she just turned and walked out of the apartment, not even bothering to shut the door.

Carmilla let out a deep breath and reached up to feel her cheek again. It felt like it was going to bruise, but that didn't hurt as much as her heart did worrying about what was going to happen now that Laura knew she was leaving. She ran over to the door and shut it before rushing back towards the bedroom.

She pushed the door open slowly, “Laura?”

She walked in, looking towards the bed where she had left her. She was sitting on the end of it, her hands in her lap. She had gotten dressed but didn't have her shoes on. As simple as that was, Carmilla took it as a good sign. _No shoes meant she wasn't ready to run out the door._

Laura looked up as Carmilla walked in the door. She stood up quickly and walked over to Carmilla, reaching up to touch her cheek. She stepped into her space and cupped her cheek in her hand, brushing her thumb over it gently. “Are you ok?” She let her thumb trace over the small cut on her lip.

Carmilla winced slightly, her cheek still tender from being slapped.  She closed her eyes and let out a sigh, _how can she still be so sweet after what she heard?_

“I’m fine” she whispered. She opened her eyes to look at Laura and reached up to take hold of her hand. She brought it down between them and rubbed her thumb along the back of her hand.

“I think we better talk” Laura said quietly, looking down at their hands. She pulled her hand away from Carmilla and went to sit back down on the edge of the bed, placing her hands in her lap.

Carmilla didn't move. She stood there nervously, clenching her hands together. She didn't care about what her mother thought. But she didn't want to lose Laura. If it meant giving up the job and staying where she was, working for her mother, even taking the position on the board, she was pretty sure she would do it if it meant not losing her.

“I don’t know what you heard but—“ Carmilla took a small step forward, “I can explain.”

Laura looked up to make eye contact with Carmilla. Her face was unreadable and she just nodded to urge Carmilla to keep talking.

“I didn't mean to— I mean, I meant to tell you but.. It just all happened and I didn't expect it” She brought her hands up to cover her face. She didn't know how to say it and it was coming out all wrong.

Suddenly she felt hands gently pulling her arms down, uncovering her face. She let out a sigh and her eyes started to well up with tears as soon as she looked at Laura. Her expression was gentle and caring, it made Carmilla’s heart ache.

“Where are you going?” She asked quietly, brushing a tear from Carmilla cheek.

Carmilla lowered her gaze to the ground, “Seattle” She whispered, then looked up quickly at Laura.

Carmilla watched her nervously. Once again her expression was unreadable.

Laura nodded like she was thinking about what that meant. She reached out and took hold of Carmilla’s hands and pulled her in closer to her.

“When?”

Carmilla swallowed hard. She didn't want to go at all now. She wanted to get back into bed and hold Laura, kiss her, feel her breathing, listen to her heart beat, fall asleep in her arms. She didn't want to answer her question. She didn't want to lose her. She wouldn't survive it.

Laura reached up and cupped Carmilla's face. She leaned in and gave her a gentle kiss. She pulled back, keeping her hands on her face, “When are you leaving, Carm?” she whispered, her eyes locked on Carmilla's.

“January.” Her voice was barely loud enough to hear. Her eyes watching Laura closely.

“January” Laura repeated softly, her expression thoughtful as she let out a breathe and dropped her hands from Carmilla’s face.


	14. New Beginnings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After the interruption.. Laura's test, Carmilla's new job.
> 
>  
> 
> Time jumps a bit between sections here.. should be easy to follow though.

She took a deep breathe and squared her shoulders.  Staring at the door wasn't going to open it but it's not like she actually wanted to go in anyway.  But if she could survive the conversation she had with Laura a couple days ago, she could survive this.  

She turned the handle and walked in with as much confidence she could muster.  

"Have a seat, Carmilla." Her mother sat with perfect posture, her hands held together on the top of her desk.  Her voice was cold, she over annunciated her words and clearly was unhappy. She watched as Carmilla walked in and closed the door before making her way to a chair opposite her. 

Hearing her voice suddenly gave Carmilla a wave of surety. No matter what happened over the weekend and what would happen over the next few months, she knew what she had to do.  

She took a seat, matching her mothers posture and focused gaze. "Before we waste any more time on the subject, I've already made my decision and there's nothing you can say to change that."  

Her mother shifted uncomfortably in her chair, clearly surprised by Carmilla’s sudden change in attitude around her. Carmilla smiled internally at how calm and sure she sounded.  What had happened since Saturday when she stood nervously in front of this same woman in her apartment?   _Laura.  Laura happened._

——

Laura tapped her pencil on the desk rapidly while her knee bounced nervously matching pace.  She glanced up from her test and saw more than one classmate staring at her with annoyed expressions.  She stilled her hand and gave them an apologetic smile before turning her attention back to her test. 

 _You've got this, Hollis._  She took a deep breath and read over the next question.  

Carmilla had been helping her study still- even after the crazy weekend they had a while ago. She said she made a promise and intended on keeping it no matter what happened with them.  Laura was glad, she needed to pass this test and there was no way that was going to happen without Carmilla. 

She smiled as she read over the question in front of her..

'14. The post–World War II economic expansion was also known as what?'

She chuckled to herself before quickly selecting the right answer.  She remembered studying that subject quite well actually.  Carmilla was right when it came to studying. All she needed was a different approach. 

——

"Look who's wearing pants today" LaF smiled and walked in the apartment with Perry following right behind.  

"That's what happens when I have notice someone is coming over. It's your own fault for always just barging in unannounced." Carmilla rolled her eyes and shut the door once they were inside. 

"Where would be the fun in that?" LaF chucked and slid some dishes of food onto the counter before taking a couple more from Perry's arms and finding room for them as well. 

“It’s very nice of you to have us over for Thanksgiving, Carmilla.” Perry smiled warmly at her as she started busying herself cleaning off the counter of used dishes.

“Laf didn't give me much choice” she shrugged and leaned down, her arms across counter.

“Have you talked to Laura lately?” Laf asked, looking over their shoulder while they did something with food and the oven.

Carmilla looked down at her hands, “not really.” She shifted a little and looked back up at Laf and Perry.

They were helping each other with food and dishes, probably only barely paying attention to her. She was glad they had each other. It took some time but Laf finally stopped being mad at Carmilla about leaving and not saying anything sooner. It helped that things with Perry were going really well. It made Carmilla feel less bad about leaving them.

“She’s with her dad for thanksgiving, so she’s been pretty busy.” She pushed herself off the counter and made her way over to the couch.

“Did she pass her test?” Laf finally gave up trying to help Perry and walked over to the couch to sit next to Carmilla.

Carmilla threw her feet up on the coffee table in front of her and shrugged, “She wont know until after the break.”

Laf reached over and gave her knee a sympathetic squeeze before standing up and walking back over to the kitchen.

Carmilla sighed and pulled out her phone to read over the text she had gotten earlier that day. Things were complicated and she didn't really feel like talking about it, so she was grateful Laf wasn't pushing the topic.

_**Cupcake (9:43am):** Happy Thanksgiving!! I know you’re probably still sleeping, but get up and eat some turkey! :)_

_**Cupcake (9:44am):** I miss you_

_**Carmilla (10:23am):** miss you too cupcake. happy thanksgiving_

She let herself smile and slid her phone back into her pocket. Complicated was ok, for now.

——

“If you don't stop pacing, I swear to all thats holy..” Betty crossed her arms over her chest.

“Sorry” Laura dropped down onto the couch next to her and Kirsch dramatically. “I’m just supposed to find out if I passed my test today and I really, really need to pass.”

Kirsch threw his arm on the back of the couch behind her, “We’ve heard your study sessions. I’m pretty sure you’re going to pass.” He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively down at her.

Laura blushed and covered her face with her hands. “You’re the worst.”

Betty let out a laugh and leaned over to kiss Kirsch on the cheek. “Relax! its just one test.” She looked over at Laura with a smile.

“One test that determines my entire future!” She stood up again and started pacing, earning an eye roll from Betty. “Without this test I have no internship, no graduation, no job, no future! History is literally deciding my future. I’d appreciate the irony if it wasn't so terrifying.” She threw her arms up in the air before crumbling back onto the couch.

——

Carmilla set down two cups of hot chocolate on the coffee table in front of the couch before sitting down.  Laura was staring nervously at her computer.  She was supposed to get her grade today and she was obviously handling waiting well. 

She leaned back into the couch and reached forward to pull Laura back by her arm. Laura kept her eyes glued to the screen as she slowly leaned back into Carmillas side. 

Carmilla wrapped her arm around Laura's waist and pulled her in tight to her side, "stop ignoring me. I didn't get to see you at all over thanksgiving and I'm feeling neglected"

Laura giggled as she pulled her attention away from her computer. She leaned in and gave Carmilla a few kisses along her jaw line, "Carmilla karnstein, I do believe you're a giant softie."

Carmilla glared playfully, "am not" she nuzzled her face into the crook of Laura's neck and sucked lightly on her skin. 

Laura took a sharp breath, "you missed me. Admit it." She said shakily trying to keep her composure despite Carmillas mouth leaving wet kisses along her neck. 

"Nope" Carmilla whispered and shook her head lightly against Laura's and continued to make her way along her neck. 

Laura took a deep breathe as her eyes fluttered shut, her head moving slowly to give Carmilla easier access to her neck. 

"Why don't we..." Carmilla moved up to capture Laura's lips in her own before pulling away just enough to speak "take this somewhere.." She kissed her again, her hand sliding from her leg up to her waist "more private?" 

"Mmmhmm" Laura hummed against Carmillas mouth. She started to smile when her laptop alerted her to a new email.   She pulled away abruptly, leaning forward towards her screen.  Carmilla practically fell over into the space between Laura's back and the couch.

Carmilla sat back up and sighed dramatically before pulling out a book and opening it up to read.

"Sorry." Laura leaned back and nuzzled into Carmillas side again, placing a kiss on her cheek. 

"Was it your grade?" Carmilla asked lazily, not looking away from her book. 

"No" Laura pouted, "junk mail." She leaned in to kiss Carmilla again but she pulled away, eyes still on her book. 

"Nope. You lost your chance when you ignored me for junk mail." She smirked playfully as she licked her index finger and used it to turn a page. 

Laura let out a huff and sank back into the couch.  Ok yeah, she deserved that one.  

\-- --

“Cupcake, I love you but you are practically causing an earth quake with your knee.” Carmilla reached over and grabbed Laura’s bouncing knee without looking up from her book.

Laura’s eyes went wide and she turned her head quickly to look at Carmilla. “what did you just say?”

“I said stop shaking you’re knee, its driving me crazy.” She said lazily, moving her hand from Laura’s leg to turn a page.

“No.” Laura turned her body to face Carmilla, “Before that.”

“I didn't say anything before that? I’ve been reading while you’ve been freaking out.” She slowly shut her book with a sigh and sat up on the couch more, “Your professor said grades would be posted at 5:00, its only 4:55—“

Laura leaned in a kissed Carmilla hard, catching her off guard.  Carmilla lifted her hand to slide around the back of Laura’s neck to hold her firmly in place as she kissed her back.

Laura pulled back slowly, looking at Carmilla’s lips as a small smile spread across her face, “you said you loved me” she whispered, moving her gaze from Carmilla’s lips to her eyes.

Carmilla expression shifted to one of panic and worry as she started to stutter, “no I— you just— I was only—“

She was cut off by another notification tone from Laura’s lap top that she had a new email. Laura's attention quickly shifted from the stuttering girl next to her to her computer as she frantically opened up the message.

Carmilla let out a relieved breathe and shifted on the couch. She said she loved her… _where the hell did that come from?_

“No way” Laura’s eyes went wide and she leaned closer to her computer screen.

Carmilla leaned forward trying to see, raising her eyebrows curiously. This was it. This was the first step of things changing. She did love her. And it was terrifying with how up in the air their possibility of a future together was at this moment.

Laura turned to face her with a wide smile, “I passed” she whispered, “I passed!” no longer whispering… She grabbed Carmilla and leaned in to kiss her.   Carmilla smiled into the kiss. _She loved her. She loved her and it didn't matter what happened next, she would always fight for this_.

Laura pulled back and clapped her hands excitedly, “I passed.” She shook her head and let out a relieved sigh, “I cant believe I passed.” She turned to look at Carmilla with a wide smile, “I have to go call my dad.”

Carmilla nodded and scooted back so Laura could get up off the couch. As soon as Laura started making her way across the coffee shop Carmilla sunk back into the cushions, “now what?” she muttered to herself.

“Carm?”

Carmilla looked up quickly, Laura had come back and was standing in front of her with a shy smile. She leaned down and put her hands on Carmillas knees, lessening the gap between their faces. 

“I love you too.” She said quietly as she slightly blushed.  She leaned in to give her a quick kiss then smiled even wider than she was already and turned and practically skipped out of the shop with her phone to her ear.

Carmilla watched through the window as Laura talked animatedly with her dad on the phone. She couldn't help the smile that grew on her face as she did.  She loved this girl more than she could ever express.  Her smile started to drop slightly as she remembered their conversation a few weeks ago-

_"January."_

_"January"_

_"I know I should have told you—“_

_"It's ok." Laura was looking at her hands in her lap, her expression still unreadable. "I actually need to tell you something too." She looked up and met Carmilla's worried gaze._

_"The reason I need to pass this test so much is because I got an amazing internship, at a real news station, that could potentially turn into a job. But they won't actually accept me for it until I pass this class. I should have told you, it's just been crazy, and things have been.. Well, you know" Laura's face was scrunched up as she ranted._

_"Hey, Laura, Laura, it's ok" Carmilla quickly moved across the room to sit next to Laura on the bed and wrapped an arm around her waist, pulling her into her side tightly. "That's amazing." She smiled at her, leaning into her shoulder.  She tucked a stray hair behind her ear, "I'm so excited for you"_

_Laura scooted closer and leaned her head on Carmilla's shoulder. "If I pass this test, the internship would start mid December."_

_"December." Carmilla whispered, mostly to herself._

_They sat on the edge of the bed together silently for a while.  Carmilla rubbed circles onto Laura's back while Laura's head rested on her shoulder._

_Carmilla let out a sigh then shifted, causing Laura too look up at her._

_"I guess we better get back to studying then." Carmilla gave Laura the best smile she could muster.  This was Laura's dream, and she would do anything to see her happy.  Even if that meant letting her go.  She leaned in and kissed her gently. She could do this.  She didn't have to let go, yet._

Laura came bouncing back into the coffee shop with a giant smile on her face.  She dropped down onto the couch and snuggled up into Carmilla's side again. She placed her hand on Carmilla's knee and slowly started to drag it up her thigh. She leaned in close to her ear, "we should go celebrate" she bit Carmilla's ear gently before standing up and reaching down to grab her hands to pull her up.  

Carmilla smiled and let Laura drag her out of the coffee shop and in the direction of her apartment.

Carmilla had been so afraid of loving Laura, scared she would end up leaving her.   _She never imagined it would be happening like this._

——

For the next couple weeks, any free time they had, was spent together. It was always bitter sweet, counting down the days before Laura had to start her internship, then the days before Carmilla would be leaving for her new job. 

“You ready yet cupcake?” Carmilla asked, leaning against the door frame, swinging a key ring around her finger.

“I could be if you would just tell me what we are doing.” Laura yelled from the other room.

Carmilla let out a chuckle and looked up as Laura walked out of her bedroom

“Woah.” Carmilla pushed herself off the door frame to stand up, taking in the sight of Laura in front of her. _Breathtaking_.

“Too much?” Laura shifted on her heels nervously, tugging at the hem of her dress.

Carmilla shook her head, not taking her eyes off of Laura and walked towards her slowly, “You look—“ she finally looked up to make eye contact with her, “Perfect.”

Laura blushed and gave her a shy smile before Carmilla’s lips pressed to hers gently.

Carmilla led Laura from her apartment building back to campus holding her hand tightly and stealing kisses along the way. Laura followed happily, not knowing where they were going but it was their last night before she had to start her internship and she didn't care what they did, as long as they were together.

They stopped in front of a familiar building and Laura gave Carmilla a disbelieving look, “Seriously?” She looked around at the empty campus and back to the building, “Do you not remember what happened last time we were here?”

Carmilla gave her a mischievous smile and pulled the keys from her pocket and opened the door. She opened it wide and ushered Laura in, shutting and locking it once she was inside. Laura shook her head and followed Carmilla as she led her down a couple hallways and up the stairs. They stopped in front of the double doors and Carmilla turned to face Laura, gripping her hands between them.

“I thought maybe we could enjoy the stars without any interruptions.” She opened one of the doors keeping her eyes on Laura, “I had more time to prepare this time.” She smirked as they walked in the room.

They were back in the planetarium. The stars were already shining throughout the room, rotating slowly, creating a whole new world. On the floor in the center of the room was a large blanket laid out with pillows, a small lamp lighting the area, complete with a picnic basket of food, desserts and a bottle of champagne.

Laura gasped at the sight of the room, a wide smile forming on her face. She turned to look at Carmilla, cupping her face and bringing her in for a kiss before looking back to the room. “This is incredible.”

She grabbed Carmilla’s hand and led her to the blanket, pulling her down to the floor with her. They laid on their backs watching the stars for a while before Laura curled into Carmilla side, resting her head on her chest, letting her hand rest lazily over her stomach.

Carmilla let her fingers traces shapes across Laura’s back and shoulder lightly as she tried to soak up everything about this moment.

“Let’s not say goodbye” Laura whispered, closing her eyes and pressing her face into the crook of Carmilla’s neck.

Carmilla sighed and pulled Laura tighter against her in her arms underneath their stars.

“Never.”

——

"Today's the day huh?" LaF handed Carmilla her cup of coffee and walked around the counter to follow her to a table.

"Yeah, I figured there was no point in waiting anymore. Laura's been at her internship for two weeks now and I’m done at Silas Prep, so..” Carmilla shrugged and took a sip from her cup. _She hated goodbyes_. 

"You talk to Laura already then?" They asked leaning back in the chair.

Carmilla kept her eyes on the cup in her hand, "no, I figured I'd just talk to her once I was in Seattle." She shrugged again and looked up at LaF, "just easier that way."

"Does she even know you're flying out today?" They asked a little surprised at Carmilla’s act of indifference. 

Carmilla chuckled nervously and shook her head, bringing the cup to her lips again.

LaF ran a hand through their hair, "I guess that's one way to celebrate New Year's Eve."

Carmilla sighed and set the cup down on the table, "Look, LaF.." She leaned forward, looking at them across the table. _She really hated goodbyes_. 

LaF smiled, "Stop. You aren't dying and I expect to see you at my graduation so this is just a see ya later. Ok?" They gave her a reassuring look, "Besides, I've always wanted to visit Seattle." They chuckled and stood up, pushing the chair in under the table. 

Carmilla shook her head and laughed as she stood up too. LaF grabbed her in a hug before she could avoid it and she begrudgingly hugged them back.  They let go and stepped back, shoving their hands into their pockets. 

"Thanks LaF." Carmilla smiled, actually being sincere, "See ya later, then.”

LaF nodded and smiled, "See ya."

Carmilla grabbed her bag from the floor and headed out of the shop. She let the cold air hit her face as she let out a heavy breathe. She stuck her free hand into her jacket pocket and headed back towards her apartment.  She had a flight to catch. 

——

_New Year's Eve should be more romantic than this._

Laura sat in her apartment eating peanut butter from the jar with a spoon.  She didn't remember the last time she was this tired.  Her internship had been amazing so far and it hasn't even been a full month since she started. Amazing, but exhausting.  

She glanced up at the clock, it was a little bit before midnight.  She smiled as she picked up her phone and searched through the contacts.  She found Carmilla's name and hit call.  Even if she couldn't see her tonight, she would settle for hearing her voice. 

Laura frowned and ended the call when it went straight to voicemail. _Weird._    

She stood up and started gathering things from the cupboard to make cookies.  She would try calling Carmilla again in a few minutes, but maybe making cookies would distract her from being alone tonight. 

——

 Carmilla glanced down at her phone as she made her way up the stairs pulling her suitcase behind her.

_5 missed calls: Cupcake <3_

Maybe she should have called before she left. She shoved her phone back into her back pocket and started down the hall towards her new apartment. The flight to Seattle was long and uncomfortable and she just wanted to get to bed. She pulled her keys from her pocket but as she got closer to her door she noticed the music coming from inside.

She stopped in front of the door and took a deep breath. She had been living alone for so long, it was going to take some time getting used to sharing an apartment with someone else.  She turned the handle and pushed open the door slowly, walking in far enough to lean on the door frame. She crossed her arms over her chest and couldn't help but smile at the sight in front of her.

She watched the girl in front of her singing and dancing around the kitchen in nothing but a t-shirt and underwear for a minute before stepping all the way in and shutting the door behind her. _Maybe having a roommate wouldn't be that bad, after all._

Laura jumped at the sound of the door shutting, dropping her spatula and a pan of cookies on the floor in surprise. “Who the hell?!” She yelled as she turned around to look at the door. Her face brightening and a smile spreading across her face when she saw who it was.

Carmilla smirked and gave her a wink, “I’m your new roommate, sweetheart.”

Laura ran over to her and threw her arms around her neck, kissing her hard. Carmilla smiled into the kiss and wrapped her arms tightly around her waist.

Laura giggled as she pulled away, “What are you doing here? I thought you weren't going to be here for another week!”  

Carmilla tightened her grip around Laura’s waist, “I couldn't be without you for another minute.” she smiled and leaned in to leave a trail of kisses along her jaw. She stopped by her ear to whisper, “The real questions is, why aren't you wearing any pants?”

Laura giggled and hid her face in Carmilla’s shoulder, placing a kiss on it before grabbing her hand and pulling her towards the bedroom.  She was loving her internship in Seattle but now that Carmilla was finally there too, there was something else to love more.

_Yeah, having a roommate wasn't going to be bad at all._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I figured since the show is starting again it was time to let this one end. Thanks to anyone who actually ready it! it was fun getting your comments and messages :) you guys are awesome

**Author's Note:**

> Tumblr: yoitsmeecass (in case you want to come say hey)


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